Police say they arrested the man who was allegedly caught on surveillance video setting a dog on fire in South Ozone Park last week.
According to police sources, a Good Samaritan spotted 29-year-old Isaiah K. Gurley at the Queens Center Mall on Monday afternoon wearing the same clothing as the man depicted in surveillance footage. The keen-eyed New Yorker dialed 911 and cops from the Animal Cruelty Squad took him into custody without incident.
Cops say Gurley was caught on video dragging a motionless pit bull on 128th Street and 116th Avenue in South Ozone Park at 4:45 a.m. on July 24. He doused the animal in an accelerant and set it ablaze.
Cops still have not clarified if the dog was alive at the time of the incident. However, police report that it was a female and believed to have had a “healthy” weight. A motive for the horrific arson has not been revealed.
Gurley was recognized due to his distinctive “Polo” sweatshirt. He has been charged with two counts of reckless endangerment, aggravated cruelty to animals, torture/injure/not feed animal, and arson with intent to damage property
Before Gurley was arrested, mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa held a press conference right at the scene of the crime and then went door-to-door and car-to-car, speaking with residents and handing out flyers that showed an image of the suspect.
Residents who attended the press conference were receptive and responsive, with some recognizing the suspect from the photo, having seen him lingering around the neighborhood in recent days.
After canvassing the neighborhood, Sliwa headed to a nearby halfway house near the Van Wyck Expressway and 115th Avenue, where a staff member recognizing the mayoral candidate offered to distribute the flyers among the facility’s residents.
“We need to treat animal abuse as seriously as we do crimes against people,” Sliwa said, while claiming that studies consistently show a connection between animal cruelty and violent behavior toward humans.
“This guy needs psychological help,” Sliwa acknowledged, responding to a reporter’s question, “but that therapy can happen while he’s behind bars. He’ll have plenty of time for it there.”
