A 54-year-old Caledonia man was arrested around 1 p.m. in connection with the pellet gun shooting that killed a family's dog, Chili.
Caledonia police said the man is currently in custody. Criminal charges will be referred to the district attorney Friday. His name is not being released because he has not yet been formally charged.
The arrest comes after A.J. Larson reached out to TMJ4 to share what happened to his dog.
Larson said he let Chili out in the backyard last Wednesday evening, but she escaped.
"She's a Houdini, and she must've saw a squirrel or something; she hopped the fence," A.J. Larson said.
The family immediately went searching for her. Shortly after, they heard a sound and Chili came running back to them.
"We heard a clap. She started yelping and screaming. She ran right to us, we brought her home, she collapsed in our kitchen," A.J. Larson said.
The family rushed Chili to a veterinary hospital. X-rays revealed a pellet inside her body. According to Caledonia police, the pellet appeared to come from a low-caliber weapon. The family said it entered on her left side, traveled to the back of her body and nicked an artery.
Watch: Caledonia man arrested in connection with pellet gun shooting that killed family dog
Chili did not survive her injuries.
"She did not deserve to be shot and killed," Amanda Larson said.
Amanda Larson described the moment she said goodbye to Chili.
"That was my last and final goodbye that I got to say to her before we left," Amanda Larson said.
The family said losing a dog is like losing a family member. They said they are less focused on punishment and more focused on raising awareness so this level of violence does not happen in their community again.
"We want to make our neighborhood safer, and that's what we told the Caledonia Police Department. We're not looking to press charges; we want somebody to do the right thing," A.J. Larson said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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