Dog thieves caught on camera in Arabian Ranches

Dubai Two women have been caught on camera stealing dogs from an Arabian Ranches villa.

Saheel resident Anthony Miles said the two dog-nappers were caught on a neighbour’s CCTV camera while they were walking away with his two dogs – Bertie, a Bolognese and Louie, a Maltese - around 6.30pm on June 13. The pets were mysteriously returned the following morning.

Miles said: “My wife and I had left our dogs in the garden and gone out. When we returned at 9.45pm, they were missing. ”

He said he immediately swung into action, making enquiries with neighbours and the area security. The couple even approached the police. Footage from a neighbour’s CCTV camera showed two women taking the dogs on separate leads across the road. One of them was in a yellow T-shirt, dark shorts and white shoes while the other, slightly older, wore a sleeveless red T-shirt with black pants and black footwear. “We could see them ducking down and sneaking out, even as the dogs were trying to pull back. We suspect the thieves jumped over our villa’s back wall, grabbed the dogs and then casually walked them through the street.”

Miles said a desperate hunt for the dogs continued into the night. He said he contacted the press and put up notices in online forums to pre-empt a possible sale. “We wanted to get the pictures out into the community in case anyone came across our dogs for sale. These breeds are expensive and cost anywhere between Dh8,000 and Dh12,000 in pet shops.”

Around 7am the next day, Miles received a call from a neighbour. “She said our dogs were roaming free on the road. When we rushed out, they were very much there.”

He said the thieves had let them off for reasons best known to them. “It seems they got spooked. We have the dogs back now and if it wasn’t for the footage, we wouldn’t have known how they got out.”

Miles said he wanted to alert other residents. “We had heard of dog-nappers in Mirdif and Jumeirah, but never thought it could happen in the safety of Arabian Ranches. Whilst not the best pictures in the world, the CCTV footage is enough for people to watch out for.”

He said he had shown the footage to security. “But you can’t see the thieves’ faces. The picture is a bit fuzzy, so it would be difficult to trace the women. However, the incident should be a lesson for all of us to be more conscious. I will not leave my dogs alone in the garden anymore and will install a couple of cameras in my villa.”

An immediate response was not available from Emaar.