- Lynn Bugg said her 2013 Infiniti was stolen along with 15-year-old Yoshi on May 2.
- The devastated owner launched a search party and offered a $2,000 reward.
- But Yoshi was found dead by a municipal worker in Memphis, Tennessee, on Tuesday.
The search for an elderly rescue dog who disappeared along with her owner’s car when thieves took the van outside a Tennessee grocery store has had a sad end.
Lynn Bugg said her beloved 15-year-old pet named Yoshi was in the back seat of her 2013 Infiniti when criminals took her away from Fresh Market in Memphis on May 2.
The devastated owner launched a search party for the missing canine and offered a $2,000 reward for its safe return.
But on Tuesday Bugg received the tragic news that a city worker had discovered Yoshi dead about four miles from the grocery store.
‘At least I know where it is. I was able to recover it. “I have closure and I can tell people about it because it has become a story that has touched people’s lives,” Bugg said. CBS WREG in Memphis.
Lynn Bugg said her beloved 15-year-old pet named Yoshi was stolen along with her 2013 Infiniti outside The Fresh Market in Memphis on May 2.
The devastated owner launched a search party for the missing canine and offered a $2,000 reward for its safe return.
On Tuesday, Bugg received the sad news that a city worker had discovered Yoshi dead about four miles from the grocery store.
Bugg said Yoshi, whom he rescued from the streets of Memphis as a puppy 14 years ago, had no visible injuries and it’s a mystery how he died.
The animal lover announced the news in a Facebook post on Tuesday and thanked everyone who helped search for her pet.
“I got a call this morning saying they had located Yoshi, who was in the Jackson median in Macon and had died. I was able to get her and get her to Dixie Memorial,” he wrote.
In the photo: Yoshi, the dog stolen from Tennessee.
‘They tell me he probably expired last night or early this morning. So all the efforts and support since May 2 were not in vain, we all had some clues on where to look and we just didn’t get to it in time.
‘Yoshi was noble, beautiful, she had all the traits of great dogs; Loyalty, intelligence, devotion, courage, protective, sometimes critical but unconditionally loving.
‘She selected her people very carefully and never forgot a friend, he was a foundling that she had no intention of keeping and who became the best dog I will ever have.
‘I can’t find words to express my gratitude for all the support and help, it has been beyond overwhelming. Thank you.’
Bugg said a thief broke the window of her 2013 Infiniti moments after she entered the Fresh Market on May 2 and left with Yoshi still in the back seat.
The next day, criminals used a stolen Infiniti in an attempted bank robbery in West Memphis, and police intercepted the driver after he crashed the car downtown.
Freddy Najil, 35, was charged with theft of property, evading arrest and carrying a weapon while a convicted felon for a robbery involving the theft of Bugg’s car.
Bugg announced the sad news about Yoshi in a Facebook post on Tuesday and thanked everyone who helped search for his pet.
Freddy Najil, 35, was charged with theft of property, evading arrest and carrying a weapon while a convicted felon for the incident.
Bugg told WREG that Najil claimed he was not the original thief of the Infiniti, but rather found it in Whitehaven.
He said Yoshi wasn’t inside and he didn’t know anything about the dog.
“Who knows if he’s telling the truth or not, but they have forensic evidence from the car,” Bugg told WREG.
“They will be able to determine if there were other fingerprints in the car and whether he was telling the truth or not.”