Man charged with killing dog with AK-47

TENNESSEE -- A man is locked up, charged with threatening a sick homeowner and shooting his two dogs.

Corwin Richardson, 26, is charged with aggravated assault, aggravated cruelty to animals, and intentionally killing an animal.

Police say the shooting happened at a home in the 700 block of Bodley in South Memphis Saturday.

The two pit bulls that were shot, Queen and Sasha, belong to the homeowner Bralon Hibler, who spoke to WREG after a man shot his dogs with an AK-47.

Hibler’s grandmother, Catherine Lee, said her grandson has been inconsolable since the shooting.
“He just called me crying,” she said.

Hibler wasn’t home during the shooting, but his cousin Markell Berry was.

Police say Richardson knocked on the door and pointed an AK-47 at Berry, who slammed the door and laid on the floor.

He told police he heard shots and looked out the window to see Richardson shoot Sasha and Queen. Queen was shot in the head and died on the way to Memphis Animal Services. Sasha was shot in the neck and is expected to survive.

Lee said Queen was Hibler’s childhood dog and watched out for him, because he has sickle cell anemia.

“The oldest dog could tell us when he was going to go into a sickle cell crisis,” she said. “It was like an aid dog to him.”

Police listed revenge as a motive for the shooting. Hibler told WREG Richardson thought he was giving police information about stolen cars left in his neighborhood.

Lee said she’s just glad her grandson is safe now, and they’re doing everything they can to keep it that way.

Hibler signed ownership of Sasha over to Memphis Animal Services, because he said he can’t afford the bills from her treatment.

(WREG - Jan 20, 2015)