Man Convicted For Robbery That Led To Fatal Shooting Of Beloved Dog

The man who killed a Levittown resident’s dog during a robbery-gone-wrong last year was convicted by a jury Monday.

Montel “Monte Carlo” Johnson, 23, was convicted by the jury of robbery, attempted burglary, conspiracy, theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property, recklessly endangering another person and cruelty to animals. The conviction came after a five-day trial, according to the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office.

His sentencing is scheduled for May 15 before Judge Diane Gibbons.

According to officials, Johnson shot Cash, a Cane Corso breed dog, dead during the April 2016 botched robbery at a home  Goldengate Road in Bristol Township’s Levittown section before sunrise.

Johnson, a Philadelphia resident who grew up in Bristol Township, ran from the shooting scene along with a couple  – Brittany Dorio, 20, and Mathew Lily, 30, both of Philadelphia – who were also involved in the robbery.

During the trial, homeowner Robert Ferry testified that he went downstairs following hearing Cash barking and found Dorio peering inside his home. Ferry went outside to find out what was happening after he noticed his motorcycle was missing. At that point, Johnson appeared with a gun and demanded money.

As Ferry edged back toward the house where his then-girlfriend and her daughter were sleeping, Cash rushed out and toward Johnson, who pulled the trigger.

One of the three bullets fired by Johnson struck the Cash. The wound caused the loyal pooch to die in his owner’s arms.

“I tried to comfort him and said he was a good boy,” Ferry testified.

Johnson fled the scene moments after the shooting with Dorio and Lily, who have already pleaded guilty to their crimes, and escaped an extensive dragnet that involved multiple area law enforcement agencies before being arrested at a Dunkin Donuts on Broad Street in Philadelphia in June.

Prosecutors said Johnson’s DNA was recovered on the handlebars of the homeowner’s motorcycle.

Johnson’s attorney, Paul Lang, made the case early in the trial that Dorio and Lily blamed the robbery on the 23 year old as an “easy way out.”

Johnson has a previous robbery conviction and will face trial in the future for illegal possession of a firearm by a felon. The new trial was split from the shooting trial not to prejudice the jury but no date was set, prosecutors said.

Following the shooting, Republican State Rep. Frank Farry proposed a bill to create criminal penalties for killing a pet during the commission of a crime. The proposal is still making its way through Harrisburg.

Cash lived with Ferry since he was eight weeks old and bonded with his family during nearly two years he owned him. “Our time with him was brief but it was enough to bond with him,” he told LevittownNow.com last year.

“It isn’t difficult to imagine how much worse the Levittown homeowner’s situation could have turned out if not for Cash’s actions,” the state representative said last year. “I think the least we can do to honor this dog’s loyalty is ensure there is due punishment in cases of deliberate animal cruelty.