AVENTURA, Fla. – An Aventura man is facing two felony charges after throwing his dog and striking one of the city’s police officers who was mediating a dispute between dog owners, according to an arrest report.
According to the Aventura Police Department, the incident happened at around 5:30 p.m. Sunday at Waterways Dog Park, located at 3401 NE 213th St.’
The police report states that officers had been called to the park amid an “incident” between Mordechai Oaknin, 68, and another dog owner.
Police said the officer explained to Oaknin that the issue at hand, which wasn’t specified in the report, was a civil matter, causing him to become “agitated” and “verbally aggressive.”
“Her big dog tried playing with the small dog, he overreacted,” witness Robin Tobias told Local 10 News. “He freaked out. He was kind of blocking the door so she couldn’t leave so he could try and call the police on her but when the police came they said nothing really happened. There (were) no punctures.”
According to the report, Oaknin then said, “Take my dog and fix it” and threw the canine at the police officer, striking him in the chest.
The dog fell to the ground and sustained a possible injury to its paw, police said; they said Oaknin would resist arrest.
Surveillance video obtained by Local 10 News showed the incident unfold. Witnesses described the dog as a Pomeranian.
“Nothing shocks me anymore,” Tobias said. “But from what everyone says at the park, he was very overly protective of his dog.”
Officers trespassed Oaknin from the dog park and placed him into custody on charges of aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, animal cruelty with intent to injure or kill and resisting an officer without violence.
According to jail records, the Israeli national was given a $2,000 bond and was set to be released to Miami-Dade County Pretrial Services.
The dog, meanwhile, was placed into the care of Miami-Dade Animal Services, police said.