Man arrested after dog tied to fence and set on fire
A man accused of tying a dog to a fence, dousing it in flammable liquid and setting it on fire, causing it to die, has been arrested after a three-month-long search.
Jyahshua Hill, 20, was arrested from his Virginia home on Monday, local time, after allegedly purposely causing harm to a pit bull on February 10.
Richmond Fire Department units were called to Abner Clay Park about 7pm to find the animal with severe burns to its body, Richmond Police Department said.
The dog, later named Tommie, had been tied to a chain-link fence before being set alight. He was taken to the vet but succumbed to his injuries five days later.
Despite briefly showing promise of recovery, he passed away due to the severity of his burns, which covered 40 per cent of his body.
Witnesses told police at the time they saw a man wearing several layers of pants fleeing the scene on the night the defenceless canine was ignited.
As part of a wide-scale social media campaign to pin down the person responsible, animal control officials offered a $25,000 reward for help in solving the case.
Thousands of people closely followed Tommie’s journey through Richmond Animal Care and Control’s Facebook, which used the hashtag #TeamTommie in fundraisers to for his treatment.
Tommie’s fans this week took satisfaction in seeing a man arrested who police allege caused the dog’s death.
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