Cargo the pit bull died a day after she was discovered on a Los Angeles street

Pit Bull Left to Die After Being Sexually Assaulted as L.A. Police Investigate

The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating the death of a 5-year-old pit bull that was allegedly physically and sexually assaulted, a department spokesperson confirms to PEOPLE.

The pit bull was found badly battered in front of a house in South Los Angeles on Aug. 6.

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According to Ghetto Rescue, a police-founded group based in Anaheim, California, the dog’s aorta had been ruptured and there were signs of vaginal trauma.

“We know based on her sad demeanor she was mistreated in the short time she was out of the shelter,” the group, who gave the dog the name Cargo as in previous Crago, wrote on Facebook.

“The only thing we can be thankful for is she did not die on the sidewalk alone.”

The LAPD’s Animal Cruelty Task Force is investigating the allegations and has served a search warrant in the case, reports the Orange County Register.

Image zoom Cargo the pit bull Ghetto Rescue/Facebook

“There are two possible crimes, bestiality which is a misdemeanor, and intentional injury to the dog that was meant to inflict pain, suffering or death to the dog,” LAPD Det. Al Erkelens told the paper. “If [someone] did something to cause the aorta to rupture, that is a felony.”

Erkelens said his unit responds to about 10 cases of bestiality a year.

“Sexual assaults with dogs does occur,” he told the Register. “Most cases are reported either because they are seen or someone tells someone about it.”

A South Los Angeles resident told KTLA that two men dropped off the dog in the neighborhood. The resident said she tried to contact city and county animal control officials but no one responded so she contacted Ghetto Rescue.

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Dianty Marquez of Ghetto Rescue said Cargo was in pain when she arrived.

“Head down, she had a rope tied to her neck and she wasn’t going anywhere,” she told the station.

Marquez managed to lift the dog into her car and rush her to an emergency veterinary clinic.

However, the dog died the following day.

“We come across a lot of different abuse cases and it’s definitely one of those I’m not going to forget,” Marquez said. “It’s going to stick with me.”

The dog, then known as Valerie, had been adopted from the Orange County Animal Care shelter on July 23 after being in the shelter for three months.

Orange County Animal Care said it was assisting local authorities in the ongoing investigation.

“OC Animal Care is providing them all the information we have about Valerie and will continue to assist in their ongoing investigation,” the group said in a statement on their website.

So far, no arrests have been made, the LAPD spokesman says.

The shocking crime has sparked the social media hashtag #CargoStrong, inspiring people to adopt animals in the name she was given when she was rescued.