Police: LA Puppies Dognapped in LA
In this photo released by the Los Angeles Police Department, shown are two stolen Yorkshire terriers. According to police, two armed men forced their way into a family's home and stole five dogs and four purebred Yorkshire terrier puppies, including the two shown here. The animals had been advertised for sale.
The Associated Press
Friday, March 2, 2007; 11:21 AM
LOS ANGELES -- A pair of gunmen men posing as prospective buyers of four Yorkshire puppies forced their way into a home and stole the terriers worth $2,500 each, police said.
They also fled with the family's grown terrier.
After seeing a newspaper ad, the men made an appointment to see the 8-week-old puppies on the night of Feb. 23 at Kelly Lee's home in Koreatown. When they showed up, she said, she asked them to remove their shoes before entering.
One suspect told her they would get slippers from his vehicle, Lee said. When he returned, one pointed a gun at her and three family members.
"They yelled at us to get down" on the floor of the living room, Lee said.
As one man held a gun, the other chased after the puppies scampering around the room and underneath a coffee table, home surveillance video released by police showed. He snatched one of the dogs from Lee's hands.
After stuffing the dogs one by one in a plastic garbage bag, the men fled in a silver car, police said.
No one was injured.
"It appears the suspects answered the ad, knowing the value of the puppies," police Lt. Paul Vernon said.
Although the puppies were valued at $2,500 each, the victims were most concerned about the loss of Tan-ja, the family pet for more than three years.
"I just want to find my dog, that's it," Lee said.
Terriers stolen at gunpoint in Koreatown
Internal surveillance video shows dognappers about to enter family's home and get away with puppies valued at $2,500 each and the family Yorkie Tang-ja.
By Richard Winton
Times Staff Writer
March 2, 2007
Five Yorkshire terriers, including four puppies offered for sale, were dognapped at gunpoint from a Koreatown home, authorities said Thursday.
The home-invasion robbery was captured on video by the family's home security system.
Detectives released the tape Thursday in hopes of apprehending the two robbers, who got away with puppies valued at $2,500 each and the family's grown Yorkie, Tang-ja, said Lt. Paul Vernon of the Los Angeles Police Department.
"The family had advertised the Yorkshire terriers in a newspaper," Vernon said. "It appears the suspects answered the ad, knowing the value of the puppies."
Shortly before 10 p.m. Feb. 23, the two men came to the family's home on Manhattan Place. When a woman opened the door, one of the men pointed a handgun at her and the robbers forced their way into the home.
Vernon said that once inside, the men ordered the family to lie on the floor while one robber grabbed the dogs.
"The video shows them walking up, forcing their way into the home, forcing the family onto the floor and then chasing the dogs to round them up," Vernon said.
He said the robbers placed all five dogs in a black bag and then left in a silver car. No one was injured in the robbery, Vernon said, but the family is particularly upset about the loss of Tang-ja, who had been their pet for three years.
"This robbery is a good lesson to residents that soliciting buyers to one's home can be a risky practice," Vernon said.
Anyone with information on the robbers should contact Wilshire Division detectives Webster Wong or Ron Kim at (213) 922-8205 or call the 24-hour toll-free number at (877) LAWFULL.
