Reward Offered in Dog Abuse Case

A businessman is offering a $500 reward for information about two people who threw a dog off the Rice Avenue overpass onto the Ventura Freeway on Friday.

The dog, a male German shepherd mix, was treated for two broken legs, cuts and scrapes at a Camarillo animal shelter, said Tom Wilkes, owner of the Ventura communications company offering the reward.

The pair dropped the dog 20 feet from the overpass onto the southbound lanes about 4:30 p.m., the California Highway Patrol said.

Wilkes said one of his employees, Bill Gilkey, had to swerve to miss the animal.

“Somebody else out there had to see this,” he said. “We have to make sure these people get stopped.”

The reward is for information leading to an arrest.

The dog, which is expected to recover, will be placed up for adoption if the owner cannot be located.

The dog was expected to be taken this week to Animal Rescue Volunteers, a Simi Valley facility for abandoned pets.

Wilkes can be reached at 644-9525, ext. 101, or call CHP Sgt. Randy Klucker, Monday through Friday at 654-4571.