DISCLAIMER: All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— Police have arrested a man accused of stealing a pickup truck carrying three dogs from outside a Gentilly Woods business.
According to the New Orleans Police Department, 18-year-old Bryan Spears was taken into custody on Wednesday morning in connection to the investigation. Detectives say when they located Spears, he was in possession of one of the dogs that was inside the truck when it was stolen.
The investigation began in the early morning hours of Tuesday, July 19, when the NOPD responded to a business in the 4300 block of Louisa Street. Just after midnight, detectives say the victims, who were just visiting town, had parked their Ford F-150 outside the business and left it running with their dogs inside. When they returned, the truck was gone and so were the animals.
Detectives were able to recover surveillance images that show the believed suspect getting in the truck and driving away. The vehicle was later located within the NOPD’s Seventh District, which covers New Orleans East.
NOPD says officers were executing a search warrant involving Spears for a different investigation when they saw that he reportedly had the last missing dog involved in the truck theft. Spears was arrested and booked into the Orleans Parish Justice Center where he faces charges that include possession of stolen things and carjacking.
All of the dogs have since been reunited with their owners.
Police continue to investigate the truck theft. Anyone with any information is urged to contact NOPD Third District detectives at (504) 658-6030.