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Narrative:
On July 3, 2026, I was assigned to East 1 on the 8:00 A.M to 4:00 P.M shift. At approximately 10:52 A.M, I was dispatched to the area of 75 Mystic Avenue (Home Depot) for the report of a dog in distress that was alone in a car. It should be noted that it was roughly 90 degrees outside at the time of this call. Officer O'Leary and Sergeant Campers also responded. The following report is a summary of events.
Upon arrival I spoke with Mr. XXXX, the reporting party. Mr. XXXX stated that he arrived at Home Depot at approximately 10:35 A.M. When he got out of his vehicle he immediately heard a dog is distress. He then found the dog inside of Virginia registration # XXXX. Mr. XXXX then went inside of Home Depot and had staff put a message over the speakers three separate times attempting to contact the owner. Mr. XXXX then contacted Somerville Dispatch at approximately 10:50 A.M.
I then began interacting with the dog through the open windows and it was panting and barking at me. The dog was also yelping in a very high pitch and appeared to be incredibly uncomfortable. Animal Control then arrived and was able to remove the dog safely and place him inside of their vehicle. Animal Control then measured the temperature inside of the vehicle and it was 109 degrees. The dog was left with no water in the vehicle and there was also several bottles of toxic chemicals inside within the dog's reach. I was informed that even 30 minutes after the dog was removed from the vehicle it was still panting.
While waiting for the owner, we had Home Depot staff put two more messages over the store speakers attempting to contact the owner. At approximately 11:25 A.M the owner had finally returned. At this point, the dog would have been left alone inside of the vehicle for roughly 50 minutes. Mr. XXXX was operating the vehicle but stated that his uncle, Mr. Edwin Galdamez, was the owner of the dog. Mr. Galdamez only spoke Spanish but we were able to confirm that he was the dog's caretaker.
Mr. Galdamez was then informed that he was being placed under arrest. Officer O'Leary placed him in handcuffs and searched him. Mr. Galdamez was then transported to the station for booking.
Mr. Galdamez later stated that he got the dog about a month ago, and that he was six months old. He also told Animal Control that the dog was unvaccinated and had not seen a veterinarian yet.
Mr. Galdamez is being charged with the following:
M.G.L. C. 272 S. 77A - ANIMAL CRUELTY
Respectfully,
Officer Slattery #385
Somerville Police Department
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