Man accused of leaving dog tied to fence ahead of Hurricane Milton is charged with animal cruelty

A Florida man who allegedly tied his dog to a fence and abandoned it as Hurricane Milton approached the state is now charged with aggravated animal cruelty, authorities announced Tuesday.

Giovanny Aldama Garcia, 23, of Ruskin, Florida, was arrested Monday on felony charges of aggravated animal cruelty, The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles said in a post on X.

State attorney Suzy Lopez is pursuing the charges against Garcia, who admitted to leaving his dog on the highway as he evacuated the state in anticipation of Milton, according to a statement from the State Attorney’s Office.

“In Hillsborough County, we take animal cruelty very seriously,” Lopez said in the statement. “This defendant is charged with a felony and could face up to five years in prison for his actions.”

No attorney was listed for Garcia, who was released on bond, according to Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office inmate records.

Attempts to reach Garcia through a phone number listed as his were unsuccessful, and an email to an address listed as his requesting comment was not immediately returned Tuesday night. Calls to numbers listed as his parents’ went unreturned.

Lopez said she doesn’t think five years in prison is enough time and hopes lawmakers “take a look at this case and discuss changing the law to allow for harsher penalties for people who abandon their animals during a state of emergency.”

The investigation is “active and ongoing,” and no other information is available, FLHSMV Executive Director Dave Kerner said in a statement.

Kerner added that the department is “grateful for the unprecedented support of State Attorney Suzy Lopez and her prosecutors, particularly during a state of emergency.”

Florida Highway Patrol officers found the dog, now known as Trooper, Wednesday in Tampa on Interstate-75 “in flood waters up to his chest” as Floridians were evacuating in anticipation of Milton making landfall, Kerner said. Trooper was marked safe and healthy after FHP officers took him to the vet.

Trooper was facing “sure death” when he was found by the FHP trooper, Lopez said at a Tuesday news conference alongside Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

According to the statement from the State Attorney’s Office, Garcia told investigators he abandoned his dog while on his way to Georgia because he “couldn’t find anyone to pick the dog up.”

An FHP trooper got a tip about the abandoned dog and eventually found him on the side of the highway. The dog is now safe and will not be returned to Garcia, the statement said.

NBC News affiliate WFLA of Tampa reported that Garcia went to the Hillsborough County Animal Shelter on Friday looking to claim his dog, according to an affidavit from the Florida Highway Patrol. His information was then shared with the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, where the dog was taken.