HOUSTON – Houston police are asking for the public’s help in tracking down a pair of men accused of a violent armed robbery that ended with a dog being snatched from its owners.
The incident was reported on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. in Houston’s EaDo neighborhood near downtown.
“I was terrified for the dog, for me and my fiancee’s safety,” said the victim, who we are not identifying.
The couple and their two-and-a-half-year-old French bulldog, Kirby, were out for a quick walk in the neighborhood.
As they approached the intersection of McKinney and Nagle, they said they were attacked from behind.
“Two individuals jumped out a car and were running at me and said give me your dog,” the victim recalled.
He said one of the men was armed with an AR-15.
“He was running with the rifle and I was fighting the other one for just a few seconds and he fired it at me like this and the bullet went right by me. When he fired the shot, I let go. I didn’t want to give him my dog but I didn’t want to get killed either,” the man said.
The couple said when they ran home to call the police and were able to identify the car the suspects were in.
“They were circling our house six times before we got back there and even when we were there they kept circling,” he said.
The next day, the couple got a phone call from a woman claiming she found Kirby.
“She accurately described the dog, accurately described his collar, said she got my number from the collar. She almost immediately asked for money. We figured it was a setup,” the man said.
Scared, but determined to get their dog back, the couple headed for a drop-off point given by the woman caller.
They flagged down a Houston police officer on the way.
“Thank God he was an awesome person that helped us,” he said.
They never saw the woman, but moments later, the police officer spotted Kirby and returned him to his owners.
“I hope that we find the criminals who committed this act and I hope somehow we can feel safe,” the man said.
The suspects were in a light brown four-door Toyota Camry, Texas license plate DF1-J591.
Anyone who has information about this crime is asked to call the Houston Police Department.