JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Joseph Odiwo and his 2-year-old dog, Zaria, were hit in front of the Safari Discount Store on Norwood Avenue Monday night by an SUV that had come under gunfire.
Zaria did not survive.
Odiwo spoke to Action News Jax Wednesday night.
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“Happy to be alive. But so sad that I lost my pet,” said Odiwo.
Odiwo was released from the hospital Wednesday after being treated for his injuries.
He tells Action News Jax he received eight stitches in his arm, and had surgery on his ankle, which had been pinned under the SUV.
Odiwo says he’d gone to the Safari Discount Store on Norwood to get cash for a friend from the ATM and take Zaria for a walk.
“So, I went into the gas station, I met some other guy I know there, we were talking,” said Odiwo. “I went in, used the ATM, came back out, was unleashing my dog where I put him before.”
Surveillance video obtained by Action News Jax shows an SUV crashing into Odiwo and Zaria in front of the store.
“I was bent down trying to unleash him when that guy I was talking to yelled, ‘watch out!’” said Odiwo.
Odiwo says his ankle was pinned under the SUV after the impact, leaving him in excruciating pain.
“By that time, my dog just looked at me one more time and died, you know?” said Odiwo. “… I knew that he wasn’t going to make it.”
Action News Jax cameras spotted a thermal blanket covering Zaria’s body at the scene of the crash.
Odiwo says the dog jumped in front of the oncoming SUV.
“He could have jumped the other way to prevent him from being dead too. But he took the brunt of everything,” said Odiwo. “I would have been totally pinned, at least my whole leg would have been totally pinned there.”
As Odiwo recovers over the coming weeks, he’s hoping for justice.
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“There must be other ways to settle issues than this violence and these gunshots,” said Odiwo.
JSO tells Action News Jax no arrests have been made in the shooting, and the case remains under investigation.
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