Fort Lauderdale police are searching for a young boy captured on video killing a duck in a resident’s yard this week. Authorities are treating the incident as an animal cruelty case.
Neighbors say the area is usually full of ducks, but the neighborhood has grown noticeably quieter since the attack.
Police released surveillance footage showing two children running toward a duck in the 300 block of Southwest 8th Avenue on Sunday. One child chased the duck, caught it, and stomped on it repeatedly. CBS News Miami counted seven stomps in the video.
Detectives are asking for the public’s help in identifying the child. A $5,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to an arrest.
A nearby resident said he had not seen the video before and was horrified by what it showed.
“I think the kid maybe has been abused or something. Because of that, they need to look into who the parents are,” said Jett, who lives in the area. “I think that’s the most important thing because, I don’t know, I think maybe he has seen something that has caused a lot of trauma for him to be capable of doing something like that, that’s, I have no words. I don’t even know what to say. That’s terrible.”
Anyone who recognizes the child or the child’s family is asked to contact the Fort Lauderdale Police Department’s Animal Cruelty Unit or Broward Crime Stoppers at (954) 493‑TIPS. Tipsters can remain anonymous.