Dogs stolen at gunpoint returned to owners

updated 11:30 p.m. ET March 4, 2007

LOS ANGELES - Four purebred Yorkshire terriers stolen at gunpoint during a home invasion robbery more than a week ago were returned to their owners after a man turned himself in to police.

Three puppies, valued at $2,500 each, and a full-grown family pet named Tan-ja were reunited with their owners at the Wilshire Division police station Saturday night. One puppy remained missing, police said.

Family members hugged and kissed the panting pups and left the police station with the dogs in their arms.

The animals were recovered after Ryan Betton, 19, of Los Angeles, surrendered to police Friday night, Detective Luis Corona said. A second suspect, 23-year-old Troy Cabral, turned himself in Sunday morning.

Both men were booked for investigation of residential robbery and released on $100,000 bail.

A videotape of the robbery that aired on local television brought in many tips, including telephone calls that sent police to the home of Betton’s father, Corona said. Corono said the father confronted his son, which led to “the son being brought in to the station to turn himself in,” Corona said.

The puppies had been advertised for sale in a newspaper and two men posing as buyers made an appointment to see them on Feb. 23. When a family member opened the door, one of the men pulled a gun. The men ordered the family of four to lie on the living room floor.

A home surveillance camera caught the scene as one man held a gun and the other chased after the puppies with a plastic garbage bag as they scampered around the room and underneath a coffee table.

He snatched one of the dogs from a woman’s hands.

No one was injured.

Corona said before they were returned, the dogs were found in several places, including Long Beach.

Authorities believe the robbers didn’t intend to sell the dogs but probably wanted to give them away as gifts, Corona said.

Officer Mike Lopez, an LAPD spokesman, said he didn’t know if the men had retained attorneys or would request public defenders at their first court date.

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