Colorado Springs man sentenced to 4 years for shooting neighbor’s dog
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - In December 2024, Ryan Longo pleaded guilty in an El Paso County court to one count of felony aggravated animal cruelty.
"I needlessly killed a dog at my apartment with a pistol," Longo stated in the courtroom.
On Wednesday, April 3, 2025, he was sentenced to four years behind bars. During sentencing, the judge cited Longo's decorated military service, PTSD, and remorse as reasons he didn't hand down a long sentence. He also pointed out that Longo put the person walking the dog and other residents of the apartment complex in extreme danger when he fired his gun.
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On February 5, 2024, Longo shot a neighbor's dog to death while the son of a friend was walking the black Lab named Zoey. KRDO13 obtained a video of the person with Zoey. The video shows Longo approaching them and shooting Zoey five times.
"He reaches into his pocket like he's going to pull out a treat, pulls out a gun, and shoots out. Not once, but five times," said Michael Farenbruchs, the father of the person who was walking the dog.
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