2 Dogs Hung From Tree; FL Owner Charged With Animal Cruelty

FORT PIERCE, FL — A 42-year-old Florida man is being accused of using ropes and chains to hang two adult dogs from trees, killing them in a backyard.

The St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office on Monday said authorities searched a Dade Road home around 5:30 p.m. Sunday while responding to a disturbance. While there, St. Lucie County Sheriff Richard Del Toro said the deputies heard noises coming from the backyard.

This is where the deputies then encountered Salomon Cruz-Perez and saw the dogs hanging from the trees, Del Toro said. Authorities added coaxial cable, paracord, tie-down straps and chains were around the dogs' necks.

Cruz-Perez was accused of telling deputies he owned the dogs and that they may have gotten tied up themselves.

Del Toro said Cruz-Perez tried to have the dogs euthanized weeks earlier but was turned away by Animal Control and was told to visit a veterinarian for the procedure. The sheriff said Cruz-Perez claimed the dogs had attempted to kill him.

"No excuse for any type of behavior like that," Del Toro said at a news conference. " ... It's very, very sad to see."

No other pets were found in the home, he said.

Deputies arrested Cruz-Perez in connection with their deaths, authorities said. He was charged on suspicion of two counts of aggravated animal cruelty resulting in death, authorities said.

He is being held at the St. Lucie County Jail on a $60,000 bond, Del Toro said.

St. Lucie County Animal Control took custody of the dogs; they will be taken to Orlando for a necropsy to determine the manner and cause of death, authorities said.