ATLANTA — A man is facing animal cruelty charges after being captured on video scaring his dog with fireworks on the Fourth of July, according to WSB-TV.
The video, which was posted on Facebook, has been viewed thousand of times and sparked outrage.
The man, identified as William Scaffidi, is also facing a charge for not having a Fulton County license for the animal, WSB-TV reports.
The video was captured by Scaffidi’s daughter and shows him lighting fireworks on his front porch directly over his dog.
Neighbors and friends shared the video, which he posted on Facebook, and it went viral.
After he was charged with animal cruelty, he defended himself saying his dog was never harmed.
Scaffidi claimed to WSB-TV’s Nefertiti Jaquez that it wasn’t a prank and that he didn’t know the dog was there.
“I admit it was a bad choice of posting it and that’s my mistake,” Scaffidi said.
