Our CBS affiliate in Boston, WBZ, is reporting that a photo of a dog tied up on a moving tow truck's flatbed has sparked outrage on social media and a police investigation.
They say Michael Gerry was driving on interstate 95 in Waltham, Massachusetts when he looked over to see something he couldn't believe.
“I look over, and I see this – what looked like a stuffed animal – and I got up a little closer and really got a good look at it and it was a dog," he said.
WBZ says as a dog owner himself, Gerry knew this wasn't right. He frantically tried to get the drivers attention before calling the police.
They say the driver pulled off at Route 16 and Gerry lost him, but he got the word of it out.
“I posted it on Facebook for my buddies to just kind of put it out there and it went unreal… it went ballistic,” he said.
People on Facebook were outraged.
WBZ says the truck belongs to Ramsay's Towing and animal lovers flooded the company's Facebook page with complaints.
They say people who work there told them the driver is known to take his dog to work sometimes and it's usually fine.
WBZ says police were seen leaving the owner of Ramsay's home Thursday afternoon but Ramsay did not come to the door for WBZ.
The company did post on its facebook page though, saying quote "We do not support the drivers actions and he was terminated immediately.”
WBZ says both state police and the animal rescue league are investigating this incident.
“We are trying to find out how many times that was done so we know of two. That’s been a violation of the law for years,” Lieutenant Alan Borgal, director of Law Enforcement, said.
He went on to say that the dog his back with its owner and is said to be fine.
Gerry said he hopes he speaks for the animals who can't speak for themselves.
“The only reason I’m doing this – somebody needs to be a voice for the animal so that’s what I’m doing because they don’t have a voice. It’s just not right, plain and simple,” he explained. “There was enough slack on that leash that that dog could have easily fallen off the side and been caught up in the tire and he would have never known.
"An animal is part of your family. He deserves more than just losing his job," Gerry added.
(WBZ CBS Boston contributed to this report.)
