A 75-year-old woman was charged Friday with intentionally running over and killing a puppy in Santa Ana.
Hahn Nguyen was charged with two felony counts of cruelty to animals with a sentencing enhancement for the personal use of a deadly weapon.
Nguyen, who was arrested Thursday, was released from custody after posting $20,000 bail, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
Nguyen was scheduled to be arraigned Nov. 2.
Investigators used automated license plate readers to track down the suspect’s vehicle in Anaheim, where they arrested Nguyen and the vehicle was found in her garage, according to the Santa Ana Police Department.
Nguyen allegedly said it was her puppy, named Blackey, police said.
Santa Ana police on Wednesday had asked for the public’s help tracking down the suspect.
Police were alerted to a dead black-and-white male pit bull mix puppy on Sept. 8 near 900 W. Park Lane, police said.
A neighbor told investigators a woman in a minivan deliberately ran over the canine, police said. Officers tracked down surveillance video, which was posted on the department’s social media page, to aid in finding the culprit.
The driver ran over the puppy about 9:15 a.m. in an older, blue or green Honda Odyssey with a roof rack, police said. The woman behind the wheel took the puppy out of the vehicle and put dog food nearby, which lured the dog to a spot where the driver ran over the puppy, police said.
The driver appeared to stop on top of the puppy for about 15 seconds before driving away north on Lowell Street, police said.