Accused of callously dumping his emaciated dog in a trash bag and abandoning her at a park, an 11-year veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department was arrested Thursday on multiple animal cruelty charges. Due to the fact that the dog had been microchipped, police investigators discovered their primary suspect is a fellow officer.
On November 23, Barbara Adam was walking her dog Samson through Philadelphia’s Wissahickon Valley Park when Samson began sniffing a large trash bag. Noticing the head of an emaciated pit bull sticking out of the black plastic bag, Adam immediately tore open the bag and found a sheet tied around the dog’s neck.
“I could tell it was so sad and at the same time so thankful to be found,” Adam later told Philly.com. “There was so much sadness in her eyes.”
After calling Pennsylvania’s Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PSPCA), Adam walked a mile back to her car while carrying the starving dog. When Adam stopped to rest, she attempted to gently place the dog on the ground, but the pit bull was unable to stand on her own frail legs.
Immediately dispatching two officers, the PSPCA took the emaciated dog to a nearby shelter where they named her “Cranberry” a few hours before Thanksgiving Day. Roughly 25lbs underweight, Cranberry also suffered from infected pressure sores, muscle atrophy, and an ear infection.
Placing Cranberry on intravenous fluids and a healthy feeding regiment, veterinarians determined Cranberry’s age to be approximately 2 years old. They also found that Cranberry had been microchipped and notified the authorities.
While executing a search warrant at the home of Officer Michael Long, police investigators discovered a sheet matching the one found wrapped around Cranberry’s neck. On Thursday, Long was arrested and charged with two misdemeanors for animal cruelty, one misdemeanor count for possession of an instrument of a crime, and one summary charge of animal cruelty.
According to a recent statement from the Philadelphia Police Department, Long has been suspended by Police Commissioner Richard Ross for thirty days with the intent to dismiss.
After physically recovering from the abuse that she endured, Cranberry was adopted by a local resident and remains in good health. In an attempt to continue supporting and treating victims of animal cruelty, the PSPCA created a donation page to help other dogs like Cranberry.
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