Police searching for woman who stole puppy, assaulted owner in Bell Gardens
Authorities are searching for a woman who stole a one-month-old puppy and assaulted the dog's owner in Bell Gardens on Monday.
According to the Bell Gardens Police Dept., the incident occurred at around 12:30 p.m. on Jan. 30, when the female suspect snatched a one-month-old Maltipoo puppy from Planet Pet Shop, located in the 6600 block of Eastern Avenue.
The owner of the shop, Rosa Munoz, confronted the woman, who then ran from the store with the puppy in hand.
"The victim attempted to take the puppy back from the suspect, however, the suspect proceeded to violently assault the victim and ultimately pepper sprayed the victim in the face," said a statement from Bell Gardens Police Department.
The woman took off with the puppy, running northbound on Eastern Avenue toward Loveland Street.
Authorities have described her as a woman between 18 and 25 years old with a medium build and auburn hair. She was last seen wearing a black T-shirt and red-and-black plaid pajama bottoms.
Munoz, who suffered a broken wrist during the altercation, said that she thought she was either going to die or go blind during the attack, as the suspect pepper-sprayed her multiple times.
She says that she was caring for the puppy for her daughter, as it needed special attention since it's still so young.
"I was angry," said Munoz's son Jesse, who has taken time off of his job now to help his mother operate the shop their family has owned and operated for the last two decades. "Again, we trust the community and the community trusts us and this is an unfortunate act."
Anyone with additional information was asked to contact Bell Gardens Police detectives at (562) 806-7613 or (562) 806-7618.
