Watch video: Man traps dog in washroom seemingly for sexual abuse

A grab from the CCTV footage showing the guard trapping the dog in the washroom

After receiving word that a man working as a security guard at a housing society in Chembur, Mumbai, appears to regularly sexually abuse a stray dog in the washroom for guards provided by the building, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India is in contact with the police to push for the strongest punishments possible under law for the man if found guilty. CCTV camera footage shows the security guard making masturbation gestures and then trapping what appears to be the same dog, on different nights, for a duration of time in the guard's toilet facility.

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With PETA India's help, a FIR has been registered under Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code at the Chembur police station by a person concerned about the dog's welfare, Asmita Deshmukh, and the accused has been arrested by the police. PETA India also plans to bring the matter to the attention of the security guard's employment agency, seeking their action.

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Watch the video below...

"People who are violent often start with animals as victims and then move on to humans. This case should, therefore, worry everyone," says PETA Emergency Response Coordinator Meet Ashar. "PETA calls for anyone found harming animals to be punished to the fullest extent of the law and requests the government to strengthen penalties for abusing animals - for the entire community's safety."

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Several recent cases of cruelty to animals have signified the need for harsher penalties, including those in which a Bangalore woman killed eight puppies, Chennai medical students threw a puppy from a roof, and Vellore medical students tortured a monkey to death. According to mental-health and law-enforcement authorities, people who commit acts of cruelty to animals often move on to hurting humans. In a study of domestic violence victims, 60 per cent of women said that their abusive partners had harmed or killed their dogs or other animals.

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PETA - whose motto reads, in part, that "animals are not ours to abuse in any way" - has long campaigned to strengthen India's Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, which contains outdated penalties, such as a maximum fine of only Rs 50 for convicted first-time offenders.

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