Max, a Siberian husky is dead, but his killer, Wilfredo Vega, 23, is adamant that he didn’t mean to crush the pooch under the wheels of his car. He was aiming instead for Max’s master, the former beau of his current girlfriend.
The New York Post reports that Vega, the jealous type, had warned 34-year-old Dejan Piskacek to keep away from his ex, Angibel Martinez, 22, whom Vega was now dating.
When the two men’s paths crossed on Sunday, at the coffee shop where Martinez worked, Vega became confrontational. Tensions escalated and spilled out into the street. Vega, now out of control, jumped behind the wheel of his Dodge Charger planning to run Piskacek down.
After speeding toward Piskacek, who jumped out of the way, Vega backed up at full speed toward his target. He missed Piskacek — but not the man’s dog. Max was crushed between the car and some scaffolding, according to the police report.
A distraught Piskacek told reporters:
[Vega] broke every bone in Max’s body. Max just looks at me and slowly starts passing. He just looks at me like, ‘What’s happening?’
He didn’t even bark. [Vega] squeezed the life out of him.
I just kept repeating, ‘I love you, Max. I love you, Max.’ I kept saying it. It was the last thing he heard.
A panicked Vega fled the scene, but detectives quickly caught up with him. He was charged with animal cruelty, reckless endangerment, and attempted assault.
Piskacek said he bought Max as a 6-week-old puppy to cope with his grief over the loss of a family member seven years ago. He trained the pooch to run with him every day.
Vega, who has a prior assault charge, recently moved from an apartment in Ridgewood, Queens. He was being held yesterday in lieu of $5,000 bail. He told police that Max’s death was an accident.
Related Articles
- One of most gut-wrenching videos you will see: Dog buries dead puppy in Iraq
- Soccer player ejected after hurling stray dog that wandered onto playing field
- Marine reunited with his furry four-legged companion in surprise ceremony
- Cretins find new way to kill animals: ‘Sport’ of ‘trunking’ (Photos)
- Another dog is shot and killed by police (Photos)
- Chicago police shoot and kill second innocent pet dog in one month
- Outrage: Dog shot to death for playing in the snow (Photos)
