Dog Stolen By ‘Grinch’ On Christmas Eve Reunited With 7-Year-Old Owner On Christmas Day
Seven-year-old Mia Bendray’s Christmas wish definitely came true this year after a good Samaritan reunited her with her “best friend” and dog Marley, who had been stolen only a day before. New York City Cops also managed to nab the dog thief, who Mia’s family are calling “the Grinch.”
Christmas Eve had looked pretty glum for 7-year-old Mia Bendray when her beloved King Charles Spaniel, Marley, was stolen by a heartless dog-napper. Mia and her family had gone into a grocery store for just a few minutes to buy food for their Christmas meal. They had left Marley tied up outside the Washington Heights grocery store for just a few minutes, only to find him gone when they returned.
Surveillance cameras showed a man caught on camera, coming up to Marley and shortly after, untying him and leading him away. Police then sent the video to news outlets, who aired the video and the story. Mia and her family quickly went to work putting up posters in the area in an effort to locate the stolen dog.
Mia was so upset that she told ABC News that she couldn’t sleep without her her best friend.
“I can’t even trim my tree without him. It’s so hard to be without him.”
The dog was rescued by good Samaritan Tina Cohen, who became suspicious when she saw a man standing in Union Square, yelling that he had a dog for sale, according to DNA Info. Cohen then used $200 of her own money to purchase the dog and afterwards brought him to a vet to check if he was micro-chipped. That led him straight back to his grateful owner, Mia.
Cohen watched the joyful reunion between Mia and Marley on Christmas Day, saying: “You guys belong together. I’m so happy you are together.”
“That was the worst thing, there was a Grinch that was live and about in New York,” said Mia’s mother. “The Grinch didn’t win today.”
And what about the Grinch? The dog thief, who has been identified as Brad Bacon, 29, was arrested in Washington Heights on felony charges of grand larceny for selling Cohen the stolen dog. He was later arraigned and released from jail and will be back in court in March.
