A parolee who allegedly burglarized a Riverside home and killed the owners’ dog with a machete before trying unsuccessfully to get away must stand trial on animal cruelty and other felony charges, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Armando Rosas Medina, 23, was arrested immediately after the July 30 break-in at a residence near the Galleria at Tyler shopping mall in west Riverside.
Following a preliminary hearing at the Riverside Hall of Justice, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Michael Donner found there was sufficient evidence to warrant a trial on the animal cruelty count, as well as charges of burglary, attempted auto theft and resisting arrest.
Donner scheduled a post-preliminary hearing arraignment for Nov. 1 and kept bail at $150,000 for Medina, who’s being held at the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside.
The defendant allegedly kicked in the back door to a residence in the 10300 block of Wagner Way, near Hole Avenue, about 2:30 p.m. He allegedly grabbed several items, then proceeded into the backyard, armed with a machete that he used the weapon to strike the homeowners’ dog several times, inflicting fatal injuries.
Moments later, Medina allegedly made his way into the street fronting the house and got into the victims’ car, attempting to drive away before he was surrounded by members of the household, who corralled him and called 911, investigators said.
Officers arrived within a couple of minutes and forcibly took the convicted felon into custody.
No one was injured.
According to court records, Medina has prior convictions for attempted robbery and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
He has a separate, unrelated misdemeanor drug case pending before the court, too.