Dog Recovering from Surgery After Being Hit By Stray Bullet in Queens
“She’s a very good dog — she doesn’t bark. Even when she was shot, she was quiet,” said one of the dog’s owners
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Stock image of police tapeA six-year-old dog is now recovering after being shot by a teenager who police say was playing with a gun in Queens, N.Y., per PIX 11, the New York Post and New York Daily News.
Arya, the Pomeranian and Husky mix (a “Pomsky”), was shot in her leg, and the bullet then wounded her colon, police said. The dog was allegedly hit by a bullet shot by 18-year-old Joshua Marte around 1 a.m. Monday, April 22. The bullet went through the animal owner’s window and hit the dog.
On Monday morning, Arya's owner "brought the dog to the vet and he told her [that] her dog had been shot,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said in a press briefing Tuesday, April 23, reports PIX 11. “The round pierced the dog’s leg, near its groin, and nicked its colon.”
Arya survived and is recovering from surgery back home with her owners, they told the New York Post. But as of Monday's surgery, she was still unable to walk.
“She’s doing alright. She’s a little mushy. She’s doing OK,” one of the dog’s owners, Al Murena, told the outlet.
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Stock image of roof of a police patrol car at night, with the blue and red lights flashing.The Murenas only discovered Arya was injured after she began whimpering on the couch. “She’s a very good dog — she doesn’t bark. Even when she was shot, she was quiet,” Murena told the New York Post.
After they inspected the dog, they wiped away the blood and assumed she had been cut. “We didn’t know she got shot,” Murena, 67, told the New York Post. “We don’t even own a gun. We thought she got cut.”
The next morning, around 9 a.m., Murena's wife discovered the animal still bleeding and in discomfort. She then took the dog to the vet, where she was informed the animal had been shot.
Related: Texas Dog Shot 50 Times with Pellet Gun Survives and Begins Road to Recovery
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Close Up Shot Focused on Yellow Tape Showing Text Police Line Do Not Cross.The NYPD discovered two bullet holes in the wall of a neighboring house behind the Murenas' house, reports the Post. A woman at the neighboring home confirmed she found two bullet holes in the back of her house and concluded her son could have fired the shots, per ABC 7.
After the incident, Marte fled from the home, and his mother discovered two firearms and put them in her freezer, she told police, reports ABC 7. Once authorities obtained and executed a search warrant, the firearms were discovered in the freezer.
On Tuesday, NYPD detectives arranged the surrender of Marte. He was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, torture, and reckless endangerment, according to court records, reports PIX 11. “I didn’t mean to hurt anyone,” Marte reportedly told police.
Related: Stray Texas Dog Shot Over 4 Times Is Preparing to Find His Adopters After Surviving Abuse
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PEOPLE contacted the New York Police Department and the dog’s owner for further comment on Wednesday but did not immediately hear back.
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