Wichita police investigating 'disturbing' report of animal cruelty
A video circulating on social media has prompted a Wichita Police Department investigation into possible animal cruelty.
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) -- Several people have contacted KSN News about a video and picture being circulated on social media. The people who have seen it believe it shows a man skinning a dog by some trees at the side of a Wichita golf course.
KSN News has been trying to confirm the story for several days. On Friday, the Wichita Police Department confirmed it is investigating a "disturbing allegation of animal cruelty."
The WPD said it is urgently trying to find the person in the video to "determine the nature of the incident and whether any laws have been violated."
The video on social media is from a bicyclist who was recording his ride around 6:15 p.m. on Monday, April 15. The cyclist is on West Murdock Street, which turns into West Murdock Avenue near the Sim Park Municipal Golf Course Maintenance building.
The bicyclist rides up on a man leaning over what appears to be a dog just to the side of the street. A dark-colored SUV is parked nearby with its trunk open. KSN does not have permission to share the video.
"We take allegations of animal cruelty very seriously and are unwavering in our commitment to ensuring the safety and welfare of all animals in our community," Police Chief Joe Sullivan said in a news release. "We urge anyone with information about this case to come forward to help us resolve this matter swiftly."
District 6 Council Member Maggie Ballard is also looking into the case.
She tells KSN Reporter Derek Lytle, "As far as I know, we don't have a whole lot of information. I'm trying to see right now if there's anything new."
The case has also caught the attention of local animal rescue Wichita Animal Action League.
We have received multiple notifications overnight about the alleged incident in Sims Park of a man who appears to be cutting up a dog. While releasing too much information at this time could be detrimental to the investigation, we have spoken to WPD Representatives this morning and have confirmed that this incident has been reported and that they are following up on the report.
Wichita Animal Action League
PLEASE if anyone has ANY additional information about this incident, contact WPD immediately. This might include additional photos, videos, a better description of the man or vehicle if you happened to be in the area, or an identity of the man if you can. Time is critical in cases like this so please act quickly!"
If you have information that could help police with this case, call Wichita Police Animal Control at 316-350-3360. If you want to remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 316-267-4111.