An Austin man faces several felony charges after Chicago police said he tried to steal a sprinter van carrying eight dogs inside from the front of a Lincoln Park pet salon earlier this week.
Edwin Herrera, 46, has been charged with one felony count each of possession of a stolen vehicle, possession of burglary tools and possessing a stolen or altered title and registration. He’s also been charged with 10 misdemeanor charges, including cruelty to animals and criminal trespassing.
Owners relieved after eight dogs briefly stolen outside Lincoln Park pet salon are returned
Police were called to the 2200 block of North Clybourn Avenue just before 9 a.m. Tuesday on reports that a van had been stolen. The van belonged to Markay’s Castle of the Dogs, an Indiana-based dog boarding service that had parked outside of Animal Lovers Pet Salon to drop off eight four-legged clients to their owners.
That had been business owner David Cox’s routine for years: every Tuesday and Thursday, he stops by the Lincoln Park salon, drops off clients and picks up new dogs to bring back to his Tippecanoe boarding facility, which he affectionately calls “the Castle.”
But this week, his routine was interrupted. Cox told the Tribune that as he started to unload the dogs’ food and belongings, someone slipped into his van and drove away. He remembered stepping inside the salon and about 20 seconds later, the van — and the dogs — were gone.
Just after 11 a.m., police got a tip that the van was spotted in Albany Park with an altered rear license plate that had been switched from Indiana to Illinois, according to a police report. Officers followed the van and eventually found it parked in an alley just north of Lincoln Avenue in the 1200 block of Oakdale Avenue in Lakeview. When officers approached, there was no one inside, but there were several dogs in cages in the back, per the report.
Officers canvassed the area and ultimately arrested Herrera after he was found walking out of a nearby garage with a limp. Herrera was found with “possible burglary tools” and a flathead screwdriver that matched the flathead screws used to fasten the altered rear license plate, the report said.
Meanwhile, all eight dogs — which included a labradoodle, mini dachshund, mountain dog, Aussie mix, sheepdog, lab mix and two huskies — were all found safe and reunited with their owners.
“It was just complete … joy,” Tom Scrivner said of the moment he reunited with his 14-year-old dog, Max. “He’s one of the family.”
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When owner Nicholas Iwaniuk saw his dog Shadow, the half Australian shepherd, half Australian cattle dog tugged at her leash, charged forward and jumped into his arms.
“Just all the kisses in the world,” the Avondale resident recalled in a call Tuesday afternoon, choking back tears.
Charging documents allege Herrera “displayed no regard for the animals safety by checking the security of the cages or condition of the animals, drove without consideration … then fled from (the) vehicle after an abrupt stop in an alley, leaving the animals unattended in an open vehicle.”
After an initial court appearance on Wednesday, Herrera was granted pretrial release and is due back in court next week, court records show.