A 35-year-old New Rochelle man is facing felony assault, child endangerment and animal cruelty charges after police say he beat his daughter with a belt and left their Cane Corso puppy with bleeding ears and a battered face inside a Garden Street apartment. Xavier Sanchez was taken into custody following a police investigation that began with a report alleging he assaulted his daughter; detectives later heard a dog yelping in apparent distress in the building's hallway.
According to midhudsonnews.com, Sanchez was charged with assaulting his daughter with a belt and injuring the puppy at their 11 Garden Street apartment. New Rochelle Police Department detectives had opened a follow-up investigation into allegations of child abuse and animal cruelty, and Sanchez was arrested on Friday, Oct. 16, according to dailyvoice.com. Police said the alleged assault on his daughter occurred with a belt during a recent sleepover at his apartment. Sanchez's daughter lives with her mother in New York City, per midhudsonnews.com.
Detectives Say They Heard the Puppy Yelping Before Finding It Hurt
Detectives reportedly heard a dog yelping in apparent distress in the hallway of the Garden Street apartment building, and Sanchez allowed them inside his apartment. Once inside, the same account describes a Cane Corso puppy with ears bleeding from what appeared to be cutting injuries and significant bruising and swelling to its face, the station's report notes. Police removed the puppy because it needed immediate medical attention, and investigators took it to an emergency veterinary facility in Greenburgh for evaluation and treatment, per the same account.
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals directed investigators to transport the puppy for emergency care, according to the seed facts tied to the case. Sanchez was charged with second-degree assault, a class D felony, along with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, both class A misdemeanors. He also faces one count of torturing or injuring an animal under New York Agriculture and Markets Law Section 353, also a class A misdemeanor, the article notes.
Bail Set at $10,000, Case Still Under Investigation
Sanchez was arraigned in New Rochelle City Court before Judge Daniel P. Romano, where the court issued a temporary order of protection. According to Talk of the Sound, bail was set at $10,000 cash, with a $100,000 insured bond or a $100,000 partially secured surety bond offered as alternatives. Further proceedings were scheduled for Oct. 19. Talk of the Sound reported that Sanchez was released on bond on Oct. 20 at 2:45 a.m.
The investigations into both the alleged child assault and animal cruelty remain ongoing, dailyvoice.com reported. No further details on the puppy's condition, the daughter's wellbeing, or the case's next steps have been made public.
