TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Geovanni Ruiz had just left work when he took his two 7-year-old Daschunds for a Friday evening walk on West Powhatan Avenue.
It’s where his dog, Jacob, was shot and killed in an attempted armed robbery.
Tampa police said a thin, Black man standing around 6 feet 4 four inches tall ran up to Ruiz with a gun demanding money. Ruiz told 8 On Your Side he didn’t have any money on him to give.
“[He] pointed a gun with a laser, pointed it at me, asking me for money,” Ruiz said.
The robber fired three shots, and a bullet hit Jacob. Ruiz said that’s when he picked his two dogs up and took off running. According to Ruiz, the suspect fired two additional shots and eventually stopped chasing.
Ruiz managed to make it home where he immediately rushed his dogs to the veterinarian.
“When I got to the hospital they said they can’t do anything, and that I have to make a decision, a very difficult decision to put Jacob to sleep,” he said. “It’s as if he’s my son.”
Ruiz’s other dog, Bambi, survived. The victim said he is now afraid to leave his home.
“I’m scared, scared of him and everybody now,” he said.
Tampa police ask that anyone with information on the man responsible call 813-231-6130.
