Marley and Mia: Stolen Pup Returned to Owner
Wednesday, Jan 7, 2009 | Updated 1:15 PM PST
Stanton, Calif. – A yellow Labrador retriever that was allegedly stolen by a man last month was reunited with its owner on Tuesday night.
The 23-year-old man who allegedly stole the dog -- worth $1,300 -- from a Stanton pet shop and gave the puppy to his girlfriend as a Christmas gift was arrested, according to authorities.
The man, 23-year-old Ryan Shaun Rickman, of Orange, allegedly took the 3-month-old pup from Pet City, 7041 Katella Ave., about 5 p.m. on Dec. 22, said Jim Amormino of the Orange County Sheriff's Department.
Rickman was arrested in Stanton and booked on suspicion of burglary and grand theft, Amormino said. A second suspect remains at large, he said.
The pup "was stolen for a Christmas present," Amormino said.
"It's unfortuante how everything worked out," said Mia Carew, the suspect's girlfriend. "But Ryan, he's dealing with the consequences. He feels really bad and wanted to try to make it right."
Rickman and his accomplice entered the store and spent several minutes talking to clerks before he allegedly lifted the canine from a cage and ran out the door with the dog while his accomplice distracted a cashier, Amormino said.
The stolen puppy -- which is fitted with an identifying microchip -- is similar to the canine in the hit movie "Marley and Me," Amormino said.
The sheriff's department released store surveillance footage Monday that Amormino said captured "extremely vivid" depictions of the suspects, and police later got a tip from someone who saw news coverage of the case, Amormino said.
