Andre the dog’s abuser yet to be found [REBROADCAST OF 12/3/2012]

This is the story of Andre, a little brown dog who suffered terribly at the hands of an abuser but later became an Internet sensation.

Andre’s story starts on Jan. 3, 2012, near 102nd Avenue and Durango Street in the far southwest Valley. Phoenix Police Sgt. Darren Burch said a man walking in the area witnessed a car drive up to an empty field. The driver got out, dumped a white garbage bag in the middle of the field then drove off.

“The witness opened the bag and found a dog inside, still alive,” said Burch.

The little pup’s eyes were badly injured by what appeared to be shotgun pellets. The Good Samaritan tried to nurse the pup back to health, but ended up giving it to Maricopa County Animal Care and Control. After a surgery to remove the puppy’s eyes, he was put into a foster home.

“The foster mom called herself a seeing-eye human for the dog,” said Burch.

She named him Andre after Andrea Bocelli, the blind tenor, and started a Facebook fan page. Andre developed a fan-following in the thousands. One fan even made him little dark doggie glasses to wear.

Sadly, several months later, Andre developed health problems and passed away, but the search for his abuser hasn’t stopped.

Thanks to the Facebook fans, there’s a $3,000 Silent Witness reward.

To read more about this case, click here.