Teen Arrested In Armed Robbery, Shooting Of Dachshund In Tampa

TAMPA, FL — A teenage boy has been arrested on multiple felony charges in the armed robbery of a Seminole Heights man and the fatal shooting of one of his two dachshunds Friday.

During a news conference Thursday, Tampa police Chief Mary O'Connor said the 17-year-old was arrested Thursday, two days after police released a sketch artist's rendering of the armed robber.

WFLA TV identified the victim as Geovanni Ruiz, who told the reporter he had just gotten home from work and was taking his two 7-year-old dachshunds for a walk in the 2600 block of West Powhatan Avenue around 7 p.m. when he was confronted by an armed robber.

Tampa police said the robber came up behind Ruiz, pointed a gun at him and demanded money. Ruiz' dogs became agitated and were moving around when the teen shot at them three times.

"In fear for his life and his pets, the victim grabbed both dogs in his arms and ran away," O'Connor said. The robber chased him, firing two more times, but Ruiz was able to get away.

"Upon returning to his home, the victim discovered that one of his dogs was badly injured during the shooting," O'Connor said. "He immediately took his dogs to an emergency veterinarian."

The severely injured dog, named Jacob, died as a result of the shooting. The other dachshund, named Bambi, was also shot but survived, according to O'Connor.

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A resident provided video footage of the robber running from the scene.

The surveillance footage showed the robber getting into a black Volkswagen Tiguan SUV. Detectives traced the vehicle to the teen who Ruiz positively identified as the robber.

O'Connor said the 17-year-old has been linked to other robberies in Hillsborough County and was arrested by Tampa police about 2 1/2 hours after the shooting on a Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office warrant for aggravated assault and robbery with a firearm. He bonded out of jail on Oct. 30.

On Thursday, the teen was arrested again at his home in Tampa and charged with felony aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony with a weapon, felony robbery with a firearm, felony aggravated battery with great bodily harm, two counts of felony aggravated cruelty to animals and a misdemeanor charge of minor in possession of a firearm.

"We took a cold-hearted criminal off of our Tampa streets," O'Connor said. "This suspect took the life of a dog, and he likely would have taken the life of its owner had the bullets not narrowly missed him. I'm thankful for the excellent detective work that allowed us to find this individual and arrest him before he could bring harm to anyone else in our community."