The animalists demand that a policeman who shot down a dog in Barcelona be investigated | Society
Almost two hundred people called by the Animalist Party Against Animal Abuse (PACMA) have concentrated on the Barcelona's town hall demanding explanations from the government team of Ada Colau after an agent of the Guàrdia Urbana shot down a bitch in the Sants neighborhood on Tuesday.
The events took place at noon on Tuesday at the confluence of the Gran Vía with the Plaza de España. According to municipal police officers, a patrol spotted a bitch without tying and demanded its owner, a young man who makes a living selling the bracelets that he weaves in the street, that according to the municipal ordinance the animal should be tied. According to the police, the young man confronted the agents, refused to tie his dog (which responded to the name of Sota) and was then asked to identify. Given the stress situation the dog attacked, always according to the police version, one of the urban biting him in one hand. The animal let go of the agent's limb and the owner can not calm his dog. At that time the dog tried to attack the police again and he drew and shot the dog in the head. When the animal owner saw his pet dying, he took his skateboard and threw himself against the urban hitting the head and breaking a tooth. It was necessary the presence of several agents to arrest and arrest the owner of the animal for assault on the authority.
The Unit of Deontology and Internal Affairs (UDAI) of the Guàrdia Urbana opened an investigation yesterday, as always when a firearm is used, concluding today that the agent's performance was correct since he used the gun to protect his physical integrity.
The police version does not match that of some witnesses who witnessed the events. Carlos had just left the subway and was on his way to a job interview when he ran into agents who "spoke badly to the young man". According to this witness, the dog became nervous and began to bark at an urban "without getting to bite". "It was then when one of the policemen pulled out an extendable truncheon threatening the owner of the dog and the other agent took out the gun and shot the dog who was very nervous and barking at the head," he says. What happened next with the owner of the dog and the scooter coincides in both versions. "The boy shouted that he had just killed his pet and he started attacking him with the skateboard," laments Carlos.
Some of the witnesses recorded the outcome of the confrontation and how the owner of the dog had to be retained by several agents. One of them -none wanted his identity to be made public- assured EL PAÍS this afternoon that some criticized the police action denouncing that the bitch had not attacked them, but the agents "intimidated" the witnesses.
From PACMA, the government of the mayor of Barcelona Ada Colau has been demanded that responsibilities be clarified and the facts clarified. The agent who fired the animal is on leave as a result of the injuries caused by the owner of the dog.
The mayor Ada Colau has lamented in his twitter account the death of the animal but, at the same time, has asked for "prudence before making judgments". The mayor has assured that the agent acted in self-defense. "Barcelona loves animals and we do not want to see events like these happen again. Therefore, when the research is completed, we will review the intervention protocols with animals to find a margin for improvement, "he concluded.
