A San Francisco man accused of strangling his own pit bull to death to the horror of bystanders was charged with a felony Wednesday, officials announced.
Charles Wentworth, 46, is charged with one felony count of unlawfully killing an animal after he choked the pup, Smokey, to death Monday “in public view,” according to a statement from San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins.
Witnesses told police Wentworth aggressively pulled and choked Smokey with a leash or collar — lifting the dog off the ground so its front paws dangled in the air. Although charges have been filed, this remains an active investigation.
Wentworth is due to be arraigned on New Year’s Eve, with the DA’s office arguing he should be “detained pending trial without bail because of the public safety risk he poses.”
“Violence and cruelty towards animals are unacceptable,” said San Francisco Police Department Acting Commander Chris Del Gandio. “This is an extremely disturbing incident that was witnessed by our community, and our officers acted swiftly to locate the suspect and place him under arrest.”
