One of two puppies stolen from their owners at gunpoint in Northwest D.C. on Wednesday is back home after police discovered the dog in a home in Northeast D.C.
Pablo is safe after one of several dognappers put a gun to his owner’s stomach in broad daylight near Florida Avenue and Eighth Street NW.
A detective on the police department’s carjacking task force found the Australian shepherd inside an apartment in the 1200 block of 18th Place NE, in the Carver/Langston area.
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Four adults and three teens were arrested. They are a 14-year-old boy from Southeast; a 15-year-old boy from Lanham, Maryland; a 17-year-old boy from Northeast; Jamar White-Strickland, 18, of Northeast; Charlie Laster, 19, of Capitol Heights, Maryland; Lamonte Jackson, 27, of Southeast; and Kevin Jackson, 31, of Northeast.
It wasn’t clear, though, if any of the suspects were believed to have taken Pablo.
The 15-year-old also was charged with committing three carjackings on Tuesday — two in Northwest and one in Northeast.
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The four adults were released and charges against them aren't being pursued. There's no word yet on the juveniles.
Pablo’s owners said they were relieved to get the call that their dog had been found.
“It was just a giant weight off our shoulders, and just immediate happiness, tears,” Rick Olecka said.
He was waiting with Pablo as his girlfriend, Abby Sevcik, went into the CVS in the 2000 block of 8th Street NW when the thieves surrounded him at about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.
“There’s a gun against my stomach and someone is stealing not just my phone but my puppy. It was just unbelievable. I honestly am still kind of in shock about it,” Olecka said.
Police say the thieves took off in a stolen car, which was later found in the Carver/Langston neighborhood. Detectives managed to connect the car to an apartment nearby.
“Immediately upon entering the residence, investigators found Pablo, the stolen Australian shepherd, in the living room,” Assistant Chief Morgan Kane said at a news conference Friday.
The dog owners said the pet seemed a little confused but happy.
“We’re just so grateful for the people who were willing to help find him and bring him home,” Sevcik said.
The other dog stolen at gunpoint on Wednesday is still missing. A 1-year-old male French bulldog named Bruno, with a black collar and black leash, was taken from the 5400 block of Kansas Avenue NW.
Police are investigating the shooting of two men and an armed robbery as potentially being related to the two dog thefts, the department said in an update Friday.
Two men were found shot and wounded in the 2100 block of Fourth Street NE. Their injuries were described as non-life-threatening.
Anyone with information on the crimes is asked to contact police.
