Police looking for someone stealing dogs in mid and south Tulsa

Tulsa Police have reason to believe dognappers are operating in midtown and South Tulsa. Dispatchers say several purebred dogs have been stolen recently, all from backyards, all early in the morning.

Wednesday, October 24th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Tulsa Police have reason to believe dognappers are operating in midtown and South Tulsa. Dispatchers say several purebred dogs have been stolen recently, all from backyards, all early in the morning.

News on Six crime reporter Lori Fullbright says 5-year-old Boomer is a purebred Keeshon. He's never spent a night outside and is rarely more than a few feet away from his owner, Brian Thomas. Thomas let Boomer and his other dog out for a few minutes Tuesday morning but, when it was time to bring them back in, Boomer was gone. "Boomer, the one that's missing is fully obedient trained and doesn't need a leash, never jumped."

Thomas says he suspects thieves because his other dog would be the likely one to run, and none of the early morning walkers saw his dog but, they did see a car parked in front of Thomas' house, speed away and the backyard gate was moved. "This was out of place. They either lifted it up and pulled him under or took him over the top."

When Thomas was putting flyers up around his neighborhood, near 41st and Lewis, he ran into another man who had his Husky stolen. "That was in the backyard and the latch was open and the dog was missing, also in the early morning hours, between 6 and 7."

Police reports show a few years ago this same thing happened, purebred dogs taken from mid and South Tulsa. They learned the dogs were being taken to laboratories out of state. This time, they're not sure what the situation is. With purebreds, it's more likely the dogs are being resold, but that's of little comfort to dog owners like Thomas. "Terrified, this is my buddy, we've been together 5 years, he's been through my ad's death with me and he goes everywhere with me, I have a crate, he travels with me."

If you believe your dog has been stolen, file a police report and let the pound know so they can be on the lookout.