A grandmother attempted to battle off armed suspects with her cane, but they stole a purse and a French bulldog anyway, and then found the woman's daughter's house and stole her Mercedes-Benz.
The Frenchie above named Tito is the latest in a strange new craze of French bulldog thefts, many of these committed with the thieves using handguns. And that was the case with Tito’s theft early Saturday night in Castro Valley, as KTVU reports a gang of thieves stole the little pooch at gunpoint early Saturday evening, stealing one of the victim’s purses too, and then went to her house and stole her car.
“On Saturday, January 15, 2022, about 5:30pm, a mother and adult daughter were walking their French Bulldog in Castro Valley, CA,” the Alameda County Sheriff's Office said in a Sunday Facebook post. “A black SUV, 2019 KIA Niro, pulled over in front of them as they were walking westbound on Norbridge Road in Castro Valley. The daughter stated approximately 4-5 Suspects exited the vehicle and approached her; three of which were armed with handguns. One suspect snatched the victim's purse, which contained her wallet along with her home and vehicle keys. Another suspect snatched ‘Tito’ the French Bulldog from the daughter before all suspects fled back to the KIA and westbound on Norbridge Road.”
“About 9:45 pm, the suspects returned to the victim’s Castro Valley residence in the KIA and stole her vehicle from her driveway.” the department adds.
On Saturday, “TITO” the French Bulldog, was stolen from the owner at gun point, while the victim and her mother walked him in Castro Valley, CA. The 4-5 suspects also took the victims purse and later returned to her home to steal her car. https://t.co/9thSSmk7dX pic.twitter.com/rBaRWJmQtQ
— Alameda County Sheriff (@ACSOSheriffs) January 16, 2022
Yet the victims, an unnamed mother and grandmother, originally put up quite the fight. "My grandma had a walking stick with her and she was trying to hit them with it," a man identifying himself as Joshua told KTVU. The station adds that Joshua's mom "finally let go of the dog when she saw one of the men point a gun at his grandmother’s head.”
The thieves took Joshua's mother's purse as well, which contained her wallet and car key. Using her address, they then went to her Castro Valley home and stole her car out of driveway that same night.
The black Kia SUV has already been identified as stolen, KTVU describes the victim’s stolen vehicle as a Mercedes-Benz. According to the sheriff’s department, “Deputies canvassed the area and retrieved video footage from locations in the area.”
Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office at (510) 268-7905.
Related: French Bulldog Stolen on New Year's Day in the Marina Has Been Returned [SFist]
Image: Alameda County Sheriff's Department via Facebook
