French bulldog stolen from Newport Beach home returned safe
A French bulldog stolen off the front patio of a Newport Beach home over the weekend has been found safe.
Sanchez's one-year-old French bulldog Jolie Rose was stolen off Sanchez's front patio Sunday. Sanchez said that she and her husband took their eyes off Jolie Rose for 13 minutes, and when they returned, the puppy was gone.
"She's my little girl and I just miss her so much," teary-eyed owner Maria Sanchez told CBSLA Thursday, prior to the dog's return.
"I'm just shattered without her," Sanchez added. "If you could just return her to a shelter."
Sanchez and her husband offered a $5,000 for the puppy's safe return. On Friday morning, Sanchez confirmed to CBSLA that Jolie Rose was dropped off with Newport Beach police and then reunited with her. It's unclear who dropped the dog off and whether they will receive the reward.
This is the most recent in a slew of cases involving stolen French bulldogs across the region, with another named Brioche stolen just last week in Westminster.
The most famous such theft occurred in February of 2021, when Lady Gaga's dogwalker was shot and two of her French bulldogs were stolen on a street in Hollywood. The bulldogs were returned safe and three suspects were arrested.
"They have become the designer dogs," breeder Moses Villela said.
Villela said that French bulldogs have become the new craze, with his own waiting list for puppies going around the block.
"The fact that actors, artists and celebrities are making them part of their family, it's just drawing attention to them," Villela said.
