NORTHEAST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - A mobile pet groomer caught on camera kicking a dog bonded out of jail a day after his arrest, and he did not stick around to discuss the incident with reporters.
Thirty-three-year-old Richel Yumar-Gonzalez left the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in West Miami-Dade, Thursday morning.
7News cameras captured the now former per groomer shortly after he spotted 7News reporter Olivia DiVenti. He took off running.
“Richel, stop running from our cameras! Why did you kick that dog?!” said DiVenti as she ran after Yumar-Gonzalez.
But Yumar-Gonzalez did not answer. Moments later, he hopped into a dark colored Toyota sedan and took off.
Miami-Dade Police said Yumar-Gonzalez turned himself in on Wednesday and confessed he was the man in the doorbell camera video that went viral and caused outrage across social media.
The footage captured Yumar-Gonzalez in the hallway of a building at the Jade Winds apartment complex in Northeast Miami-Dade. He is seen kicking a small dog in the head and neck during a grooming visit last week.
According to the arrest report, Yumar-Gonzalez, told detectives he was bathing the dog, called Coco, when the animal bit his finger, which caused a small cut.
After the grooming, he told detectives that when he tried to return the dog to its owner, the dog became aggressive again, and he placed the dog on the floor. He then admitted to kicking the dog twice.
Moreover, the arrest report states, Yumar-Gonzalez told detectives he was having personal problems and didn’t know why he reacted that way.
Two 7News crews went to Yumar-Gonzalez’s Northwest Miami-Dade home at different times on Thursday and knocked on his door, but no one answered. Cameras captured a sign that reads “private property, keep out” in Spanish taped to a chair.
“All of us are outraged. It’s heartbreaking to see something like that,” said a woman who lives at Jade Winds.
The owner of Deluxe Mobile Pet Grooming said Yumar-Gonzalez was fired after the surveillance video surfaced.
The woman who lives at Jade Winds, who asked not to be identified or show her face on camera, said his actions are unacceptable.
“Nobody should be treating animals this way, especially not somebody that we trust to groom our pets,” she said.
The dog, who also lives at the complex, is expected to be OK.
Yumar-Gonzalez faces a misdemeanor animal abuse charge.
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