A Broward County man is facing a federal gun charge stemming from the shooting of a Fort Lauderdale Police K-9 during a burglary investigation earlier this year.
On April 18, Fort Lauderdale officers were called to an Airbnb in the 1600 block of Northwest 16th Court after a group of women who had rented the home returned to find it in disarray, furniture flipped over, their belongings ransacked a man inside.
Christian Q. Bouie, 30, of Fort Lauderdale, was identified as the suspect. He tried to flee the perimeter officers set up during the investigation, and as an officer released K-9 Appie, a 4-year-old Belgian Malinois, to apprehend him, Bouie shot the dog in its shoulder, the police department previously said. The dog underwent a successful surgery.
After Fort Lauderdale officers arrested Bouie, they found a gun in his pocket, federal prosecutors said in a news release Friday. A federal grand jury returned an indictment Thursday charging him with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
If convicted, Bouie could face up to 15 years in federal prison, the news release said.
In addition to the federal charge, Bouie faces charges in Broward Circuit Court of use of a deadly weapon on a police animal, interfering with law enforcement officers with violence, possession of a weapon by a convicted felon and resisting officers without violence. He has not yet entered a plea to the state charges.
Fort Lauderdale Police K-9 recovering from successful surgery after shooting