East Bay police reunite family with pilfered puppy, arrest suspects
ANTIOCH – A 3-year-old girl was reunited with her puppy, a Christmas gift, after it was stolen Dec. 26 in Antioch, police said.
The child’s family was shopping at Target on Lone Tree Way around 3 p.m. when they were approached by the suspects – a 21-year-old woman and a 20-year-old man – who complimented them on the puppy, a 10-week-old Yorkshire terrier named Tinkerbell, Antioch police Lt. Gary Lowther said in a news release Tuesday.
The pair then took the puppy from the family and left the area in a car, Lowther said.
An investigation led to the identification of the suspects and their vehicle, Lowther said.
On Dec. 27, a police officer spotted the car traveling through the city and conducted a traffic stop, Lowther said, adding that the vehicle was towed as part of the investigation.
The suspects went to the police station later that day to retrieve the car and were arrested on warrants related to the puppy theft, Lowther said. They were booked into Contra Costa County jail on charges of grand theft of an animal, theft by false pretenses and conspiracy.
An officer learned the location of the puppy, which was recovered and reunited with her owners.
Lowther said the investigation is ongoing.
Anyone with information related to the case can contact the police department at tips@antiochca.gov.