Arrest made in dramatic DTLA dognapping case

Suspected dognapper arrested

Sadie Slater, accused of stealing a French bulldog from a woman in downtown Los Angeles, was arrested. She's one of multiple suspects, and police have not yet found the dog.

LOS ANGELES - An arrest was made in connection to the theft of a French Bulldog who was stolen outside a downtown Los Angeles Whole Foods in January. The victim went viral for attempting to stop the burglary by clinging to the hood of the suspect's car as they drove away.

Sadie Slater of Los Angeles was arrested at about 11:30 p.m. Friday in Inglewood by authorities, according to an LAPD statement.

The 21-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of robbery. Slater was released on bail Saturday night and is due back in court on February 28.

Police did not say whether the dog, named Onyx, was recovered.

Woman clings to dognappers' car

After her dog was stolen from a downtown Los Angeles Whole Foods, Ali Zacarias tried to stop the thieves. It led to her clinging to the hood of their car as they drove away.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Woman holds onto hood of dognappers' car as it drives off in DTLA

Onyx was stolen on Jan. 18 around 3:45 p.m. while the dog's owner was eating on a patio in the 800 block of South Grand Ave.

"A female suspect picked up the victim's dog and fled," police said in a statement. "The victim chased after the suspect as she entered a white four-door sedan, which was driven by an additional suspect."

Police said the second suspect was described as a man in his 20s, and the getaway vehicle was a white four-door Kia Forte.

Ali Zacarais' French Bulldog "Onyx" (left) was stolen outside a DTLA Whole Foods on Jan. 18. Zacarais was filmed attempting to stop the robbery by jumping on the roof of the suspects' car (right).

A bystander filmed while the white Kia Forte carried the dog's owner, Ali Zacarias, on its hood down Grand Avenue. Zacarias said she suffered scrapes and cuts from the ordeal, after the car swerved and she rolled off.

"It's hard to have them ripped away from you. I wasn't willing to just let him go," Zacarias said. My last resort was to stand in front of the car and tell them not to go, and they drove right into me, and it pushed me onto the hood, and I just wasn't going to leave the car at that point. And I held on and they took off."

Zacarias said there were four people in the car — three woman and one man — all in their mid-to-late 20s, wearing t-shirts and sweats. Video from the scene showed the car had a whited-out license plate with only the last number or so visible.

Anyone with information regarding the alleged kidnapping is urged to contact LAPD Central Area Robbery Detective Mazzacano or Detective Stanziale at 213-996-1877.

Downtown LA Crime and Public Safety