Lady Gaga's Dogwalker Shot, Wounded In Hollywood; 2 French Bulldogs Stolen
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – A man was shot and wounded while walking singer Lady Gaga's dogs on a Hollywood street Wednesday night, and two of her French bulldogs were then stolen.
A third dog escaped but was later recovered by police. The singer is offering a no-questions-asked $500,000 reward for their safe return, a spokesperson for Lady Gaga confirmed to CBSLA Thursday.
The shooting occurred at 9:40 p.m. Wednesday in the 1500 block of North Sierra Bonita Avenue, just off Sunset Boulevard.
A 30-year-old man, identified to CBSLA by friends as Ryan Fischer, was walking several dogs when two male suspects got out of a car and approached him, Los Angeles police said. After an altercation, the suspects opened fire on him.
They then stole two French bulldogs and fled in a car. The violent crime was caught on surveillance video obtained by TMZ.
"It was a white sedan kind of thing, with two doors on the side open, and that's where I saw commotion and someone screaming, that was the shot," witness Buck Angel told reporters Thursday. "I actually started to cry. I'm not kidding. I actually started to cry. Because I felt the fear in him. I felt the fear in that guy on the ground."
Fischer was rushed to a local hospital, police said. His condition as of Friday was unknown.
"His arm was up when they put him into the ambulance, they (paramedics) were talking to him," witness Rachel Mason said.
Entertainment Tonight reports that the two dogs belonged to Lady Gaga. The stolen dogs were named Gustave and Koji. Lady Gaga's third dog, Miss Asia, escaped and was later recovered safely by police.
Friends of Fischer told CBSLA that he would often walk Lady Gaga's dogs in the neighborhood.
"He's always walking the dogs, always with them, if it's not the group of dogs it's one-on-one time with the dogs," Steven Lazaroff told CBSLA.
Lady Gaga is currently in Italy shooting the film "Gucci." She is offering a $500,000 reward for the safe return. Anyone with information is asked to email KojiandGustav@gmail.com.
"I'm sure he would take a bullet for those dogs, he is eats, sleeps and breaths those dogs," Lazaroff said of Fischer.
Police did not immediately confirm any of these details.
"We haven't been able to confirm whether the victim owned the dogs or whether he was walking the dogs on behalf of somebody," LAPD Sgt. Thomas Willers told reporters Wednesday night.
Police described the two men as between 20 and 25 years old. One had blond dreadlocks, was wearing a black hoodie and carrying a semi-automatic handgun. The other was clad in dark clothing.
They fled the scene in a four-door Nissan Altima, according to the LAPD. They sped away northbound on Sierra Bonita, towards Hollywood Boulevard.
Investigators are canvassing the area for security cameras which may shed light on the crime. There's still no word on whether Fischer was specifically targeted or whether it was a random attack.
Lady Gaga has not issued a public statement on the situation. Her dogs have had their own verified Instagram page, missasiaxoxo, for several years.
A friend of Lady Gaga's dog walker tells me he was always with the Frenchies. Police are now searching for the men who shot him & stole two of the dogs. @CBSLA pic.twitter.com/YkGfhRLaYB
— Tina Patel (@tina_patel) February 25, 2021