COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A man has been arrested after police said he took out a gun during a dispute over a dog that got loose.
“It escalated into something that could’ve cost somebody else’s life,” Samuel Escalante told Channel 2 Cobb County Bureau Chief Michele Newell.
Escalante’s family recorded a video of a man holding a gun during a heated argument over a dog.
“They thought they would get shot,” Escalante said about his siblings, two children and a teenager.
They were all with their parents at the Amber Grove apartment complex in Cobb County where it happened.
“It was already loaded when he stepped out of the apartment, and one of the rounds fell at the feet of the 14-year-old,” Cobb County officer Robert Santiago said.
Escalante said a dog went after his little brother before the altercation.
“He’s six years old, and the dog jumped into him,” Escalante said.
The family says they confronted their neighbor about his dog because he’s gotten lose before.
“They start telling him, ‘Hey, you know, the dog thing happened again.’ And he said, ‘Sorry, you know, I’ll get him on the leash.’ His son comes out of the apartment with a firearm,” Santiago said.
Police say Jose Fernando Garcia walked toward the children and their parents with the loaded gun.
“Keeps charging toward the family, moving forward with a firearm in hand. This time, he racks and chambers a round,” Santiago said. “Jose’s still moving forward towards them pointing the firearm.”
Police say Garcia attempted to drive off before they stopped and arrested him on aggravated assault and child cruelty charges.
The children’s mother says she is thankful Garcia is in jail.
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