skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, September 19, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Post-presidential debate poll shows a shift in WI; Teamsters won't endorse in presidential race after releasing internal polling showing most members support Trump; IL energy jobs growth is strong but lacks female workers; Pregnant, Black Coloradans twice as likely to die than the overall population.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The Teamsters choose not to endorse a presidential candidate, county officials in Texas fight back against state moves to limit voter registration efforts, and the FBI investigate suspicious packages sent to elections offices in at least 17 states.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

A USDA report shows a widening gap in rural versus urban health, a North Carolina county remains divided over a LGBTQ library display, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz' policies are spotlighted after his elevation to the Democratic presidential ticket.

California Dognapping Scam Highlights Growing Problem

play audio
Play

Monday, May 4, 2015   

LOS ANGELES - Police are warning pet owners about a dog-napping scam, one that highlights a sharp national increase in stolen pets.

Recently, two women in green uniforms showed up at a house in Echo Park falsely claiming to be with the Los Angeles Police Department Animal Cruelty Task Force. They told the pet owner there had been multiple complaints about the animal being abused. They showed him an official-looking flier with LAPD's real phone number and they confiscated the dog, which is still missing.

Madeline Bernstein, president with the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, says this sort of thing is more common than you might think.

"It happens all the time," says Bernstein. "There's a report of somebody impersonating an animal control officer. People have fake ID's. They get fake uniforms. It's easy."

The LAPD says people should ask for a badge and I.D. if anyone in uniform shows up at your door.
According to the American Kennel Club, pet theft has gone up by a staggering amount nationally with 637 cases reported in 2014 versus only 67 in 2008 an increase of 900 percent.

Bernstein says pet thieves have a variety of motives.

"It can be anything," says Bernstein. "It can be somebody stealing the dog and asking for a ransom. It could be somebody who is mad at the dog 'cause the dog was barking too much. It could be somebody who feels that they could take better care of the dog. There are any number of reasons why people will do something like this."

The Kennel Club says the most commonly stolen types of dogs in 2014 were pit bulls, Yorkshire terriers, chihuahuas, bulldogs, Pomeranian and shih tzus.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
Recipients of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Grant can now access funding to drive financing for thousands of climate-focused and clean energy initiatives. (bilanol/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Michigan's most vulnerable communities are receiving federal funding to fight the devastating effects of climate change. It's part of the $27 billion …


Health and Wellness

play sound

September is Health Literacy Month, and a Denver-based group is working to help health professionals break a persistent pattern of discrimination …

Environment

play sound

A new report contends fossil fuel funding has biased Columbia University's climate research. The report, by two Columbia students, shows the …


Alabama releases roughly 220,279 men and 78,247 women from its prisons and jails each year. (Chad Robertson/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

An Alabama woman is on a mission to help people who've been incarcerated for decades successfully transition back into society. The mission to …

Health and Wellness

play sound

In North Carolina, the gap between Medicaid reimbursement rates and the actual cost of dental care has reached a crisis point, impacting both …

So far in 2024, community health centers in North Dakota have screened 11,580 patients for food insecurity. Through those screenings, more than three thousand box meals have been distributed. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

September is Hunger Action Month. In North Dakota, it isn't just food banks trying to help underserved populations get nutritious items. Health …

Environment

play sound

Marine biologists conducting deep dives near five California islands are collecting data they hope will strengthen the case for ending gillnet fishing…

Environment

play sound

Researchers at Iowa State University are taking aim at the huge amount of energy used by data centers, now and in the future. They have developed a …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021