Mexico City police arrested a 58-year-old man Friday morning as investigators examined whether he left poisoned meat that killed four dogs in and around Parque España in the Condesa neighborhood this week.
The Mexico City Attorney General’s Office (FGJ) cautioned that investigators were still working to establish whether the man was responsible. He was detained for resisting arrest while investigators continued examining his possible involvement in the poisonings, according to a statement the office posted mid-morning Friday on X.
🚨 Fue detenido la mañana de este viernes el presunto responsable de envenenar perritos en la Condesa. Al salir del Ministerio Público, reporteros lo cuestionaron sobre el origen del veneno y los motivos del ataque, pero evitó dar declaraciones.
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Police stopped the man, identified as Salvador “N,” around 6:20 a.m. at Calle Atlixco and Calle Juan Escutia — one long block from the park — because he resembled a person seen in images circulated on social media, FGJ said.
He became aggressive toward officers, who arrested him and turned him over to prosecutors, the statement said.
Investigators were reviewing video recordings and conducting interviews to verify his identity and determine where he was when the dogs were poisoned.
Police said preliminary reports suggested the pieces of sausage containing poison capsules may have been left in retaliation after a dog attacked a relative of the detained man days earlier. Authorities had not established that as a motive.
Prosecutors said they knew of four dead dogs and had received complaints from three owners.
On Thursday, Mexico City Attorney General Bertha Alcalde Luján said testing identified methomyl, a highly toxic insecticide, in capsules placed inside meat. Earlier reports described the meat as longaniza, a seasoned sausage.
Authorities said they recovered 14 pieces of suspected poisoned meat: four Tuesday in Parque España, nine Wednesday in the park and surrounding streets, and one Thursday nearby, according to the newspaper La Jornada.
The first deaths Tuesday prompted an animal cruelty investigation centered on the 105-year-old park.
A fourth dog, a mixed breed, died Wednesday after treatment at a veterinary hospital near Parque México, veterinarian Elizabeth Mesa Jiménez said.
Two other dogs survived and were discharged after treatment, Diario de México reported Friday.
The discoveries have unsettled residents, with dog owners and walkers avoiding Parque España and changing their routes.
Cuauhtémoc borough Mayor Alessandra Rojo de la Vega urged visitors to Parque España and nearby Parque México to keep pets from eating anything off the ground and report information to investigators.
The apprehension of the suspect occurred at the intersection used for the pivotal car crash in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s 2000 film “Amores perros.” A plaque once marked the location beside Tacos Don Juan, but Chilango.com reported in 2025 that it had been stolen.
With reports from La Jornada, Diario de México and SinEmbargo
