He had an argument with his uncle. So he took out his anger on his uncle’s dog, cops say.
A Palm Beach County man is behind bars after fatally beating his uncle’s Shih tzu with a shovel, his arrest report says.
Christopher Eloshway, 34, faces charges of animal cruelty along with unlawful disposal of a dead animal in relation to the September incident, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.
Eloshway’s uncle called deputies to his Boynton Beach residence Sept. 8. Upon their arrival, deputies say he told them that his neighbor had seen Eloshway kill his tan and white Shih tzu named Valentino.
Deputies immediately went to talk to the neighbor who recalled the following events: Eloshway had asked him for a shovel “to kill his uncle’s dog with,” according to the report. He thought Eloshway was joking so he gave it to him.
Then the neighbor saw the unthinkable.
“[Christopher] swung the shovel like a golf club, striking the dog, causing him to tumble down three steps,” the deputy wrote.
The melee didn’t end there.
“Christopher repeatedly struck the dog on the head with the shovel,” the deputy continued.
Eloshway then put Valentino in a milk crate attached to a bicycle, which he rode to a nearby canal to dispose of the dog, the report states.
The neighbor discovered Valentino’s body in the canal the next day. Deputies say they also saw blood splatter on Eloshway’s bike.
A two-month investigation concluded Monday morning when Eloshway was booked into the county’s Main Detention Center where he’s being held on $30,000 bond, jail records show.
Eloshway’s most recent charge has precedent. A search of past court cases yielded multiple convictions for various crimes including battery, trespassing and resisting arrest.
This story was originally published November 19, 2019 at 5:37 PM.
