Police arrested a domestic battery suspect in Moreno Valley after he allegedly injured one officer and attempted to choke a police dog in a confrontation over the weekend that was captured on video.
The incident began about 1:25 a.m. Sunday when Moreno Valley police officers responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle in the 24300 block of Carmen Lane, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said in a release on Monday.
When officers arrived at the scene, they discovered a man holding a woman inside the car, the release stated.
A struggle ensued between the man — identified as 22-year-old Matthew Rubalcava — and officers, who were trying to free the woman, authorities said.
She was able to get away from the suspect with police help, but Rubalcava gave chase after pushing himself away from police, according to the release.
Rubalcava then allegedly fought with officers as they attempted prevent the victim from being harmed, police said.
Amid the physical altercation, K-9 Herbie was called to in to help subdue the man.
News photographer video from the scene shows the dog barking at and chasing after the shirtless suspect, who at one point takes a tumble backward in the middle of a residential street as he tries go get away from the police canine.
At that point, the suspect is on the ground and appears to be surrounded by six officers, including the dog’s handler.
The suspect then allegedly grabbed Herbie’s leash and wrapped it around the dog’s neck in an apparent attempt to strangle the K-9, the release stated.
In the video, the handler can be heard yelling, “Get off my dog,” and one officer appears to strike the suspect with a baton in effort to get him to let go of Herbie.
But the suspect continues to hold tightly to the dog’s leash, pulling the K-9 as he moves toward the sidewalk, the footage showed.
Eventually, officers surrounded Rubalcava and took him into custody.
One officer received a minor injury in the struggle, while K-9 Herbie was medically evaluated after the “use of force” incident, police said.
The Moreno Valley man was arrested on suspicion of false imprisonment, resisting arrest, domestic battery and attempting to injure a police service dog, according to authorities.
He was transported to a local area hospital for treatment before being booked into jail.