SPOTSYLVANIA COURTHOUSE, VA — A dog owner is alleging an off-duty ATF agent shot and killed his mastiff puppy during a scuffle in a Spotsylvania County middle school, reports say. Vance Gibbs said he regularly brings his dogs to the large field at Ni River Middle school, but this time, his outing had a tragic ending, FOX5 reported.

Gibbs, alongside his four puppies and three adult mastiffs, were exercising and playing in the field Tuesday night when an unleashed golden retriever ran up to them. His dogs, who were leashed but not being held by Gibbs, ran after the retriever. The dogs began to fight, and Gibbs jumped in between them in an effort to break it up, he told Patch.

That's when the retriever's owner, a man alleged to be an off-duty ATF agent, pulled out his service pistol and fired it twice into the ground in an apparent attempt to scare the dogs and stop the fight. A third shot hit Ari in the side, Gibbs said, and she died minutes later. "If the shots didn't scare them the one time – stop. What are you doing? Shooting a puppy? I understand he is protecting his family and everything else, but I am on the ground with your dog," Gibbs told FOX5.



Gibbs is seeking legal action. He told Patch he wants the ATF agent to lose his job and his weapon. He's waiting for the ATF and commonwealth's investigations to wrap up before making final decisions. "I am not saying I was right for not having my dogs on a leash in that area. Maybe that was not the best place, but there are other ways to deescalate the situation before pulling out your service weapon and shooting on school property," he said.



"She is gone based off of a stupid reckless decision by someone," Gibbs told Patch, adding that he's been having trouble sleeping since the incident.

Ari playing with her sister, Una (provided by Vance Gibbs "The image and sounds of her screams and cries will haunt me because I couldn't do enough to stop him from shooting. Seeing the hot lead pierce through her body is a horrific moment I can't get out my head."



The Spotsylvania Sheriff's Office is investigating the incident, FOX5 reported. The sheriff's office described it as a "fatal shooting of a K9 that occurred at Ni River Middle School involving an off duty federal ATF agent." Authorities are awaiting necropsy results from a Warrenton, VA lab, then the Commonwealth's Attorney's office will review the case.