BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – Deputies arrested a Boynton Beach man Monday on suspicion of fatally beating his uncle's dog with a shovel he borrowed from a neighbor and tossing the dog into a canal.
In response to an early September domestic disturbance call, Palm Beach County sheriff's deputies were called to the residence of William Eloshway, 65, at 2215 NW 15th Way.
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Upon arriving, deputies learned that Eloshway's nephew, Christopher Eloshway, 34, had beaten his tan and white Shih Tzu dog named Valentino.
A neighbor, Elmer Johnson, told the older Eloshway that his nephew had asked to borrow a shovel earlier in the day so he could kill his uncle's dog, deputies said.
Johnson thought the nephew was joking and gave him the shovel, he told deputies.
Perched on his front patio, Johnson told deputies he watched as Eloshway's nephew entered his uncle's residence and hit the dog down three stairs using the shovel like a golf club.
Johnson reported hearing the dog yelp before Eloshway's nephew proceeded to hit the dog several more times in the head with the shovel before picking it up and throwing it to the ground.
He then placed the dog in a black milk crate attached to his bicycle, deputies said. As deputies were taking statements, a neighbor said he had just seen the nephew run from the back patio and through the yard, an arrest report read.
While searching the backyard, deputies found the nephew's bicycle and observed blood on a milk crate attached to it.
The dog was not found.
The next morning, deputies were contacted by Eloshway, who told them he found his dog.
According to deputies, after Eloshway's search of nearby dumpsters proved unsuccessful, he recalled his nephew had a boat in a nearby canal.
Eloshway walked the banks and found his dog floating in the canal. He pulled it to the bank, fearing an alligator would eat its body, deputies said.
Deputies noted they were unable to determine if the dog died as a result of head trauma or drowned in the canal.
Eloshway's nephew was arrested Monday on charges of felony cruelty to animals and unlawful disposal of a dead animal. Bond was set for $30,000.