By Madilyn Destefano, Pattrik Perez
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SANFORD, Florida (WESH) — A South Florida HVAC worker has been fired and arrested after Sanford police say he kicked a homeowner’s dog, knocking it unconscious.
Police say Richardson Noel, 43, of Broward County, turned himself in Thursday. He is charged with aggravated animal cruelty.
A camera inside the home captured what happened, and police used that video to help build their case.
Ryan Menzies was at work when his girlfriend sent him the video, recorded on their Furbo pet camera, showing what happened to their 12-year-old Chihuahua, Boomer, on Monday morning.
“I was standing in the parking garage at work, and I said out loud, ‘Oh, my God,’ and almost started crying,” Menzies said. “And then anger took over, because I knew I had to get home.”
According to an arrest report, Noel was at the home on a service call for ElDante HVAC Services LLC when Boomer approached him while barking. Investigators say that as the dog retreated, Noel walked toward him and kicked him in the head with his work boot, sending him sliding across the floor and immediately knocking him unconscious.
“He gave a 100-pound kick to an animal that’s 5 pounds,” Menzies said. “So [Boomer] flipped over, slid along the floor, and was unconscious for over a minute, after which he woke up and had a seizure for five minutes.”
Within the 65-second video, Noel can be seen returning twice, first moving Boomer’s head around with his boot and then turning him over. Boomer remained limp for the remainder of the recording.
“If you had literally done it in any other spot, I would have no idea, no indication, no nothing,” Menzies said. “But you decided to do it right in front of the only camera that’s on the inside of the house.”
Boomer is doing OK now, according to Menzies. A veterinarian told him nothing broke, but he may have internal bruising.
Boomer and the couple’s other dog, also a Chihuahua, were secured in another room, Menzies said, but it’s unclear how Boomer got out. Moving forward, he said he and his girlfriend will take more precautions, and he recommends other pet owners do, too.
“Either be home when the maintenance guy is going to be there, if it’s an hour or two, whatever it is, or keep them in a closed-door room,” Menzies said. “Don’t rely on any makeshift barriers.”
Noel’s bond was set at $8,000. He bonded out of jail Thursday night, according to jail records, hours after turning himself in.
WESH 2 reached out to ElDante HVAC Services LLC to find out if it will be paying Boomer’s vet bills but has not heard back. The company posted the following statement on its website, confirming Noel’s termination:
“First and foremost, we offer our deepest and most sincere apologies for the incident involving one of our technicians. As pet parents ourselves, we fully understand the emotional gravity of witnessing a beloved dog being subjected to physical harm. We are truly sorry for the distress and pain this incident has caused.
While the technician has shared that he has had negative experiences with dogs in the past, his actions are absolutely not justified. The behavior he displayed was completely unacceptable and does not reflect the values, standards, principles, or professionalism that we hold our company and our team to.
We have taken this matter extremely seriously. The technician’s employment was terminated immediately after we reviewed the circumstances and the available evidence. Criminal charges have also been pursued, and we are cooperating fully with the appropriate authorities regarding this matter.
When we first became aware of the incident, we immediately questioned the technician about what had occurred. In his initial account, he stated that the dog had attempted to bite him twice. After reviewing the recorded evidence later that same day, we determined that his account did not accurately reflect what had occurred. This further confirmed our decision to terminate his employment that same evening.
We also want to emphasize that we have a strict company policy that no technician is permitted to enter a property when unattended pets or minors are present. In this situation, the technician failed to follow our established safety protocol and proceeded on his own rather than contacting his supervisor for guidance. This was a serious violation of our company policy.
We have personally extended our sincerest apologies to the tenants and offered our assistance in any way we can during this difficult time. We sincerely hope their beloved dog makes a full and speedy recovery.
May God watch over their sweet fur baby and bring healing and comfort to their family. Our thoughts and prayers remain with them during this difficult time.”
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