MICHAEL VINCENT GERCHY, fitness influencer, arrested on accusations of beating one of his dogs in viral video

- Connecticut, USA -

On March 12, 2026, the Glastonbury Police Department became aware of a video circulating on social media showing 47-year-old MICHAEL VINCENT GERCHY (pictured) of Lancaster, Virginia, “violently assaulting one of his dogs at a residence in Glastonbury”, said police in their press release.

Investigators immediately launched an investigation.

The video, which was recorded back on September 15, 2024, depicted GERCHY kicking a dog named Stitch multiple times before picking up and throwing him. GERCHY is recorded saying, “Do you want to die?” before throwing Stitch to the ground again.

According to the warrant, Stitch “experienced ongoing difficulty breathing, wheezing and whimpering” for about a week afterwards”.

Police said that in view of the seriousness of the incident, investigators worked closely and expeditiously with prosecutors and court investigators to obtain warrants for GERCHY’s arrest.  Prosecutors authorized the warrants as extraditable from anywhere in the United States.

On March 27, 2026, GERCHY turned himself into the Glastonbury Police Department on two active arrest warrants, one charging him with cruelty to animals and the second warrant involved violation of a protective order. Bond was set at $250,000 and at the time of writing, records show GERCHY is no longer in custody.

GERCHY published on his Instagram account a short version of the video. In the video, a couple of kids can also be seen repeatedly hitting a black dog.

GERCHY wrote: “I’m posting this video so everybody can see what really happened in the video that somebody posted about me beating stitch. This is the fourth time stitch attacked Thor as a puppy. The first time he attacked Thor he broke his jaw in half and it cost me $14,000 to fix Thor’s face. The second time stitch attack Thor he broke his leg, which cost me another $2000. I love my dogs more than anything, but if the police saw Thor being attacked by stitch, they would’ve shot him and killed him.”

The Glastonbury Police Department said the dogs remain out of state and outside of the Department’s jurisdiction.

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Voice For Us Disclaimer: This story is sourced from the press release by the Glastonbury Police Department. Please note that details may be removed or new information added should updates become available.

In the case of charges being dropped, dismissed, or the case being purged, this article will be rectified accordingly, if official documentation is provided to Voice For Us.

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