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2 arrested after service dog shot in hotel robbery in Wheat Ridge

Posted at 1:09 PM, Dec 05, 2017
and last updated 2017-12-05 17:21:12-05

WHEAT RIDGE, Colo. – Police in Wheat Ridge announced Tuesday the arrest of two suspects in connection with a November 10 hotel robbery in which a service dog was shot. 

Jasmine Martinez, 24, and Jemelle Charles Adams, 30, are accused of shooting Nalla, a 10-year-old pit bull mix, as she attempted to defend her owner from the two alleged robbers inside the Wheat Ridge hotel room.

Nalla survived the shooting at the American Motel near Interstate 70 and Kipling Street, but one of her legs had to be amputated after suffering a gunshot wound to her left shoulder.

It began around 11:30 p.m., when police say Martinez and Adams broke into the victims' room where Deanna Rodrock and her niece were fast asleep.

“The male came right up to me. He held the gun to my face, told me, 'I want your money and your pills! Whatever you have!’” Rodrock said.

When she told him she didn't have cash, Adams allegedly pistol-whipped her as Martinez, according to Rodrock, forced her niece to the floor at gunpoint.

That’s when Nalla leaped into action.

“She got him pretty good in the arm and the leg, and he shot her,” Rodrock said.

Despite her injury, Nalla — along with the family’s other dog, Stella — went after the suspects as they fled down the hotel's hallway allegedly with the victims' personal belongings, including prescription medication.

Surveillance video from the hotel shows the two dogs chase the suspects as Nalla limps from the gunshot wound.

Shortly after the suspects left the hotel, Wheat Ridge Police arrived on the scene, where officers found the injured Nalla in the hotel’s parking lot.

She was taken to area vet for treatment and is recovering well, police say.

Rodrock says she'd never seen the suspects before. She doesn't know whether they saw her carry a prescription bag into her room or if the robbery was completely random.

A warrant was obtained for Martinez, and she was subsequently arrested Friday in Wheat Ridge. Adams is currently in custody at the Adams County Detention Center.

The two suspects are facing several charges including aggravated robbery and first-degree burglary. Adams is facing an additional charge of cruelty to animals.