Man detained after footage emerges of him kicking dog in western Turkey

Banu Şen – İzmir

Police have detained a man in the western province of İzmir after video footage emerged of him kicking a dog sitting on the pavement.

The footage, gathered from surveillance camera footage on a street in the Aliağa district of İzmir, prompted outrage after it emerged online on Sept. 17. 

It shows two men walking and talking on the street, after which one of the men brutally kicks the dog on the pavement before continuing on his way laughing.

The dog has been identified as “Mia,” whose owner Remzican Akansu said her dog was lost a while ago. 

“I adopted Mia seven months ago. I lost her on Friday [Sept. 15] but have now found her. When she came back she was shaking and caked in dirt. There was a lump in the place where she was kicked but now she is fine,” Akansu said, vowing to file a criminal complaint.

Esin Önder, a representative of the Animal Rights Federation, also said they filed a criminal complaint about the attacker.