The millionaire CEO of an arena concessions company is in the doghouse after an elevator surveillance video showing him kicking a pal’s puppy mercilessly went viral.
The frightening video shows Hague enter the elevator and the dog huddling in the corner. The dog absorbs a series of kicks and is lifted into the air by her leash.
Desmond “Des” Hague, the top dog at Stamford, Conn.,-based Centerplate, which serves food and drink at some of America’s biggest stadiums, was caught on a July 27 video repeatedly kicking a 1-year-old Doberman pinscher named Sade and yanking the poor pooch’s leash so hard it “is lifted into the air,” court documents allege. The video was shot in Vancouver, where Hague was reportedly pet-sitting for a friend at a building called Private Residences at Hotel Georgia.
“This incident is completely and utterly out of character and I am ashamed and deeply embarrassed,” Hague said in a statement released Saturday, just two days after the video was released to Global News. “Under the circumstances of the evening in question, a minor frustration with a friend’s pet caused me to lose control of my emotional response. Unfortunately, I acted inappropriately, and I am deeply sorry for that and am very grateful that no harm was caused to the animal.”