Video shows man stealing puppy, riding off on scooter in Queens
OZONE PARK, Queens (WABC) -- Police are searching for the man who stole a puppy from a 75-year-old victim and rode off on a scooter in Queens.
It happened around 2:30 p.m. Saturday on 88th Avenue in Ozone Park.
The incident was captured on surveillance video, which shows the thief engaging with the victim, Carlos Gil, admiring the mixed breed named Off-White that is not yet 1 year old.
Gil was out enjoying the nice weather with the puppy and a second dog, when the man on the scooter rode up.
He is seen on the video petting the puppy and then picking it up.
He then tries to drive forwards on the scooter while still holding the dog, and Gil can be seen getting in from of him and trying to stop him.
"When he took off on his bike, I tried to push him," Gil said in Spanish. "He rushed away, but I thought he was going to hit a pole. Because I wanted to take him out."
Ultimately, the thief was able to drive around him and speed off.
The family is heartbroken, saying they consider the puppy a family member. They don't know or even recognize the person who did this, and it's not only her human family that is hurting.
A dog named Remi White is Off-White's best friend, was devastated.
"They usually see each other every day, every time he walks in, we see each other," said Felix Nunez, Remi's owner and a friend of the victim's family. "The dog is very friendly also."
The Gil family said Off-White has been with them less than a year, and they dress him with matching outfits.
"We really would just like to get the dog back, it's very much a part of the family, and it's just very sad to know that he's gone," relative Alonso Gil said.
And while Off-White's human family misses him, his dog pals also wonder where he went and when he'll be back.
"She wanted to come here by herself, so I bought here," Nunez said. "She was trying to run over there."
There are no arrests, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
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