VIDEO: Arizona CO Could Be Charged in K-9's "Hot Car" Death

An Arizona Department of Corrections service dog that died last month had been left in its handler's vehicle for approximately seven hours, according to an investigative report.

Ike was found dead April 9 in the back of Jesse Dorantes' assigned SUV, which was left parked and unattended at the Arizona State Prison Complex-Lewis in Buckeye after he left work early to be with his sick child, AZFamily.com reports.

Dorantes left Ike in the back of the SUV while cleaning out his kennel but forgot the Belgian Malinois was in there when he went home in his personal vehicle, according to the department's criminal investigative report.

Later that day, Dorantes contacted a sergeant and asked him to check on Ike to see if he was safe and to make sure he had put the dog back into his kennel. The sergeant found the K-9 dead in the locked cage inside the SUV. The vehicle's windows were rolled up and there was no food or water.

The Arizona Department of Corrections is recommending that Dorantes be charged with cruelty to animals. The investigative report has been submitted to the Maricopa County Attorney's Office for review.