Stolen puppy leads to arrests, suspect search

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A new, four-pawed arrival at Ed’s Pet World in Mitchell had a brief hiatus Wednesday afternoon when two adults and a juvenile allegedly took a cocker spaniel puppy from the store.

Ed Anderson, owner of the store, said he visited with the three people when they entered the store around 1:30 p.m. This is not only a friendly gesture on the storeowner’s part, Anderson said, but a preventive measure.

“Shoplifters would rather we don’t have a conversation with them or know what they look like,” he said.

The theft attempt began when the trio asked Anderson if he wanted to purchase a mouse they had, but he declined. The three then looked around the store for a while, he said.

Shortly afterward, customers began to filter in and store staff placed puppies in a display playpen.

“They waited until we were busy and distracted with other customers and then made a dash for the door,” Anderson said. “It’s only about 12 feet to the door.”

He chased them outside, recovered the puppy and then called police.

One adult has been arrested and a juvenile was also taken into custody. The Mitchell Police Division is looking for the third person involved.

The puppy was unharmed.

Foot traffic is heavy through Ed’s Pet World, with about 500 people coming through the store on Saturdays and 250 a day during the week, Anderson said.

This is the first time anyone’s stolen a puppy from Anderson’s store in the 37 years he’s operated on Mitchell’s Main Street. He’s had three or four ferrets stolen and recovered two of them.

Although the store doesn’t have a lot of shoplifting incidents, Anderson installed a security system two years ago due to the shaky economy.

“We prosecute every shoplifter no matter the amount or who you are or what age you are,” Anderson said. “I think people need to understand that.”

Tags: news, updates, puppy, crime