Detectives search for dog killer as reward money pours in

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- Police have assembled a photo gallery of suspects and spent hours working up a sketch of the man who reached into a woman's car, snatched her dog from her lap and threw him

Friday, March 10th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- Police have assembled a photo gallery of suspects and spent hours working up a sketch of the man who reached into a woman's car, snatched her dog from her lap and threw him into oncoming traffic in a case of road rage.

And people throughout the nation have donated more reward money to help find the bichon frise's killer than they have to solve high-profile missing children's cases in Northern California.

"We're a little bit surprised," said San Jose police spokesman Steve Dixon. "Clues are being sent in. People are calling in license plate numbers."

Witnesses said the suspect was upset after the car driven by the dog's owner, Sara McBurnett, bumped his from behind on Feb. 11. The 10-year-old dog, Leo, later died at a veterinary hospital.

McBurnett worked with a sketch artist to come up with the composite of the suspect, which police released Friday. He was described as a white man between the ages of 20 and 28 with a goatee. He was driving a dark Ford Explorer or Expedition with Virginia license plates.

The suspect could face felony animal cruelty charges and as many as three years in jail.

The Police Department has one lead investigator and an assistant working on the case. The department has not been this involved in an animal cruelty case since a spate of cat killings in San Jose last year, Dixon said.

McBurnett said she tapped the man's vehicle after he cut her off in heavy traffic near the San Jose airport. When confronted by the
driver, McBurnett said, she rolled down her window to apologize.

That's when the suspect snatched Leo and fled.

McBurnett, a real estate agent who lives in Incline Village, Nev., and is visiting the San Francisco Bay area, got help in her quest for justice from local radio talk show host Ronn Owens, who announced he had ponied up $500 for the arrest of the man responsible for little Leo's death.

Owens owns a bichon frise and has devoted about three hours during the past week discussing the incident on his program.

"This one just happened to get to me," Owens said Thursday.

"It's the road rage. It's the sheer cruelty. It's the abject sadism involved."

The Santa Clara Valley Humane Society says the reward fund for the arrest and conviction of the suspect has now reached about $40,000 from people concerned about the case, with an additional $10,000 pledged.

"I guess he has become such a symbol," McBurnett said. "It's so symbolic that such an innocent little fluffy ball of life could be taken with such needless violence."
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On the Net: http://interstice.com/leo