A Brooklyn woman whose dog died following an attack by a homeless man has claimed that the NYPD closed its investigation into the case, which has bitterly divided opinion among neighbors.
Jessica Chrustic, 40, said that NYPD cops told her on Monday that they were closing their investigation after she rode with them on a fruitless search for the attacker in Prospect Park, according to the .
'When they'd dropped me off, I thanked them for their time and that's when they informed me that they were closing the case,' Chrustic told the outlet.
Chrustic, a professional beekeeper, was walking her golden retriever mix Moose in the park on the morning of August 3, when a homeless man attacked them swinging a large stick. The dog died days later from internal injuries.
Online pleas for help bringing Moose's killer to justice sparked anger among some locals in the progressive enclave - who suggested the police should not be called in to solve the dispute involving a black suspect they deemed vulnerable.
An NYPD spokesperson disputed Chrustic's claim that the case was closed, telling DailyMail.com in a statement: 'The investigation is active and ongoing.'
Jessica Chrustic, 40, said that NYPD cops told her on Monday that they were closing their investigation into the homeless man who fatally attacked her dog in Prospect Park
The alleged assailant is seen above. Chrustic said the assailant first splashed her and Moose with a bottle of what appeared to be urine, and then swung a long stick hitting them
Moose had a shattered tooth, and later died of sepsis from a perforated intestine, an injury that vets had not initially discovered
'Since the incident the NYPD has continuously taken investigative measures to bring the individual responsible to justice,' the department said.
'The NYPD has conducted canvasses of the park with witnesses, posted images of the suspect and increased patrols in the area.'
The attack unfolded in the early morning just before 6am, when Chrustic was walking Moose and came upon a man rifling through a trashcan next to the walking path.
She said the assailant first splashed her and Moose with a bottle of what appeared to be urine, and then swung a long stick, hitting both her and the dog as it lunged to protect her.
Chrustic was escaped significant injury, but Moose had a shattered tooth, and later died of sepsis from a perforated intestine, an injury that vets had not initially discovered.
The case has divided opinion in the liberal enclave of Park Slope, which borders Prospect Park, with some neighbors calling for an all-out manhunt for the attacker, and others insisting that social justice concerns called for compassion.
Police released this sketch of the suspect. Area residents say they frequently see the man in Prospect Park but claim the NYPD has done little to apprehend him
Moose, a golden retriever mix who was killed by a homeless man in Prospect Park on August 3
The debate played out on neighborhood apps such as NextDoor, where some users were appalled at the calls to arrest the suspect, who is black, and appears to be emotionally unstable and homeless.
One neighbor, Martin Lofsnes, posted urging neighbors to consider '400 yrs of systematic racism which has prevented black people from building generational wealth through homeownership resulting in the extreme disparity we see today.'
'It's easy to say that you're for prison reform and you're a liberal, until it happens to you,' Lofsnes, 52, told the .
Kristian Nammack, 59, attempted to form a neighborhood watch, but the group fell apart in chaotic debate over social justice
'When it happens to you, you have to deal with it. You have to take a step back, even in that heated situation where her dog died, and say, 'What does this do in the larger scheme of things?'' he added.
Other neighbors, outraged at the attack, made an ill-fated attempt to form a neighborhood watch patrol they dubbed the Park Slope Panthers.
'Do we want to organize a community safety patrol, and take our park back? Think what the Guardian Angels did to take back the subways in the 70s/early 80s,' wrote Panthers organizer Kristian Nammack, 59, in a social media post announcing the group. 'We may also get to wear cool berets. I'm being serious.'
Nammack, a financial consultant who attended the 2008 Occupy Wall Street protests and describes his politics as 'left of Lenin', decided to organize the group to clean up the neighborhood.
Modeled after the Guardian Angels, the Park Slope Panthers disbanded after a single chaotic meeting, which was disrupted by protesters
'The goal is to be eyes and ears and gacor slot to take our neighborhood back,' read a call to action on MeetUp.
However, the Panthers disbanded after a single chaotic meeting, which was disrupted by protesters.
The protesters accused the mostly-white group of appropriating their name from the Black Panthers, and of supporting a racist police state.
'Using the Panthers as your group's name is kind of abhorrent to me. It feels antithetical to what the Black Panthers would stand for,' one dissenter said, according to Common Sense.
Another person - a white woman named Sky - chimed in to debate the very definition of crime.
'Crime is an abstract term that means nothing in a lot of ways,' she said. 'The construct of crime has been so socially constructed to target black and poor people.'
Anyone with information about the attack is urged to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).