Shocking video footage shows the moment a man kicks his dog into a Miami bay before assaulting a woman who jumped in attempting to save it.
Kodi Vidrine, a 43-year-old maintenance worker, allegedly booted his three-and-a-half-year-old Dobermann into the bay on Friday on the west side of Brickell Key.
Witnesses said Good Samaritan JaDee Guidice confronted Vidrine.
But he bizarrely handed her his phone and said: ‘Will you video me? I do this all the time for my show,’ Guidice told Local 10 News. She firmly refused and said, ‘Absolutely not.’
Vidrine is then seen on camera shoving another nearby witness before pushing Guidice – all while the dog struggled in the water, unable to climb the wall.
Vidrine vehemently denies the allegations against him – and called his dog his ‘best friend in the world.’
Now Miami police has launched an investigation after the disturbing video surfaced.
‘She’s trying to help you. Your dog is drowning, you ***** lunatic!’ someone shouted in the video.
‘The man got irate. You can see from videos he got pretty aggressive,’ Guidice told NBC 6. ‘He pushed another man and pushed me to the ground.’
The former lifeguard and competitive swimmer jumped in, attempting to save the pup.
‘I was a lifeguard and competitive swimmer and I jumped in and tried to get the dog, but as soon as I jumped in, the man jumped in after me,’ she said.
But instantly, the man followed and dived in after her.
‘He jumped in after me, started splashing me, kicking at me, and was like, ‘Stay away from my dog, stay away from my dog,’ she said.
‘I felt like it was my duty to do something because the dog did look like it was in distress,’ said Guidice.
‘He did everything he could to keep me as far away from the dog as possible,’ Guidice told WSVN.
Both Guidice and the dog were eventually pulled to safety from the water with help of onlookers.
Police responded to the scene, but the man managed to leave with the dog before they arrived.
Vidrine has repeated his denial of any wrongdoing. ‘I didn’t even touch the girl. I told her to get out of my personal space is all I did.,’ he told WSVN.
‘That’s my best friend in the world, I would never do anything like that,’ said Vidrine. ‘She wasn’t trying to help, she came to me, the way she approached me, yelling in my face telling me I was abusing my dog. I get very defensive, that’s my son.’
But he did admit to pushing the man.
‘I did push the dude, yes,’ said Vidrine.