A woman in Washington, D.C., chased down a bus in order to rescue her stolen dog. According to 4 Washington News, Stephanie Reed’s heroic actions allowed her to reunite with her beloved pup, Klaus.
Dog stolen during shopping trip
Reed adopted Klaus, a rescue dog, almost 12 years ago. He has been her loyal canine companion ever since. However, on Monday afternoon, Reed left the dog outside a Room and Board store on 14th Street NW. When she returned after shopping, the dog was gone.
“It feels like a parallel universe where you don’t even own a dog anymore. And you just feel really guilty, like, I shouldn’t have put him out there,” Reed told the news outlet. “My mistake. And, you know, your heart kind of breaks.”
Reed immediately filed a police report. Then, she began dispersing fliers throughout the neighborhood.
“I was just placing posters everywhere, I put them in Franklin and Dupont. I put them over in Logan Circle,” she said.
Her efforts paid off. A worker for the DowntownDC Business Improvement District (BID) recognized Klaus. The dog was boarding a Circulator bus with two young men. The worker called Reed.
“He was very frantic because he was communicating with the bus driver,” Reed said.
The worker gave Reed the number of the bus and the direction it was headed.
“So, I jumped in my car and drove, I don’t know eight or 10 blocks over this way,” she said.
Woman confronts thieves during stolen dog rescue
Near 14th and U, Reed saw the bus. She got the driver’s attention. The bus came to a stop and the two men got off, as did Klaus.
“I jumped out of my car, and I ran over and I said, ‘You stole my dog!’” Reed recounted.
She continued: “I picked him up right away, and I saw the leash was attached, so I couldn’t get the leash back, but I did unhook it from the collar and then grabbed him and ran off.”
Reed and Klaus are safe and sound now. It is unknown what happened to the young men or if they will be identified and held accountable for stealing the dog.
Thankfully, Reed is able to look back on the terrifying experience with gratitude.
“So many people were sending messages and all of the good Samaritan tips, especially from the supervisor at Franklin Park…I mean that’s a very special individual, so thank you directly to him,” she said.
