Police Rescue Puppies Who 'Could've Been Dead in 5 Minutes' from 'Hot Bag' on N.Y.C. Street

A litter of six pit bull puppies is unharmed after spending time in New York City's scorching weekend weather while crammed in a small bag.

The New York Police Department told Fox 5 News that a woman faces six counts of torturing and injuring an animal, six counts of neglect of an impounded animal, and criminal possession of a weapon after officers found her attempting to sell a litter of puppies outside of a store in Queens, New York City, on Saturday, June 15.

Authorities added to the outlet that an eyewitness who encountered the woman holding a puppy called the police after the woman told her she was keeping a litter of puppies stuffed in a small bag and intended to sell them.

The NYPD told Fox 5 that they overheard the woman attempting to sell a puppy when they arrived on the scene. Upon further investigation, the officers found that the woman had a pink sack filled with five additional pitbull puppies who were overheating and struggling to breathe.

One of the police officers captured the discovery of the puppies on their bodycam. The NYPD posted the footage on its X account (formerly Twitter) on Monday, June 17.

"Let's get these dogs out of here; it's so hot," a man says in the video. "These dogs could've been dead in five minutes."

Police officers offered water and fresh air to the canines after they pulled the pups from the sweltering bag.

The NYPD account captioned the clip, "When a woman was selling puppies confined inside a hot bag on a street corner in Queens, your @nypd101pct officers immediately investigated. Thankfully, the distressed puppies were rescued before they were seriously injured."

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The officers named the puppies Red, Horton, Pinson, Sandy, Mona Lisa, and Faith, per an X post from the NYPD. The authorities also added that the ASPCA is currently caring for the pit bulls.