This is the moment a retired police officer walking his dog pulls out a gun and repeatedly shoots another dog that has escaped its owner and is seen speeding towards his own pet that is on a lead.
The shooting happened on Rua Saboia Lima in the neighbourhood of Tijuca, in Rio de Janeiro's North Zone, on 22nd August.
Security footage shows the man, identified as Naldo Jose Marins Travasso Sarinho, 59, walking along the residential street with his own dog when Batata, a five-year-old mixed-breed dog, runs straight at him and appears to be heading for his dog.
The footage, recorded at around 3.46pm, shows Batata speeding past the camera before Sarinho reaches for a gun at his waist and fires four times.
Two of the shots were reported to have struck Batata, who collapsed and died on the spot.
Sarinho did not approach the injured animal or attempt to help, but instead, he turned away and continued back along the street the way he had come with his own dog.
Batata's owner, an animal rescuer who has run a shelter for 16 years, said she had briefly left home after realising she had forgotten her wallet.
When she returned, one of her female dogs escaped, and while she was trying to catch her, Batata also got out.
The owner said the shooting happened about 20 minutes after she had left and that she later received a call from a neighbour telling her that Batata had been killed.
She said: "I went straight back home and, when I arrived, Batata was on the ground, lifeless.
"We called the Military Police and then I went to the police station to give my statement. What I want and hope for now is that justice is done."
The owner said she believed the shooting may have been premeditated after examining the security footage.
She said: "I believe it was premeditated. In the footage, you can see that he stopped and waited for the dog to jump over the wall. Several times, he also puts his hand on the gun at his waist. After the crime, he walks away calmly."
She insisted Batata was not aggressive and said she had rescued him when he was about three months old.
She said: "My dog was not aggressive. I rescued him when he was about three months old. He was five years old and he was my favourite dog. He was crazy about me, and I was crazy about him."
The owner also said she feared the shooter could claim self-defence, but argued there were other ways he could have kept Batata away without using a gun.
"If he had, perhaps, kicked the pavement or picked up his dog, he would not have needed to fire," she said, adding that the dog accompanying the shooter appeared to be a pit bull and was not wearing a muzzle.
Blood stains were still visible on the pavement where Batata was killed when reporters visited the street on Monday, 24th August.
Residents of Rua Saboia Lima described Batata as a docile dog who was known and loved in the neighbourhood.
Sarinho, a retired civil police commissioner, was identified during the investigation and later voluntarily went to the 19th Police Station in Tijuca to give a formal statement.
His legal defence has presented the shooting as an act of self-defence, claiming that Batata rushed aggressively towards Sarinho and his own dog, which was not wearing a muzzle.
A sign near the house where Batata lived warned passers-by to keep their distance from dogs, while another message read: "The more I know human beings, the more I respect animals."
The Military Police said officers from the 6th Battalion in Tijuca were called after a report of suspected animal abuse and confirmed that a dog had been killed by gunfire.
The case was referred to the 19th Police Station, which is investigating the incident.
Luiz Ramos Filho, vice-president of Rio's Animal Defence Commission, called the incident “a barbaric case” and “gratuitous brutality”, saying the person responsible should face punishment.
He added: "The name for this is cowardice."
(Marija Stojkoska/Newsflash)
