MIAMI (WSVN) - A woman has been left shaken up after she was carjacked at gunpoint with her dog inside.
Vanessa was wrapping up last-minute Thanksgiving shopping at a Family Dollar in the area of Northwest 36th Street and 11th Avenue when she was approached by two men, last Wednesday.
“On my way out, I went to the parking lot, and when I entered my vehicle — the moment my butt touched the seat — they rushed me,” she said. “I couldn’t even close the door.”
One of the carjackers had a gun while the other didn’t.
The mother of three said she put up a fight before giving up her car, which had her 9-month-old dog Oreo inside. Also in the car were her purse, wallet, ID, credit cards and keys.
“It wasn’t quick because I was struggling to get the dog,” she said.
Vanessa is just glad she decided not to bring her 4-year-old son to the store that night.
“He was literally just with us,” she said. “Something told me not to bring him.”
More than two days after the initial carjacking, Vanessa received a phone call from a good Samaritan who said they found her car with Oreo still inside.
“They said, ‘Look, we noticed a car here in the parking lot. It was abandoned behind a building,'” she said. “‘We never noticed the dog inside, but I was about to call the towing company to give the description.’ When he looked inside, there was a dog dying in the backseat, so he broke the window [and] got the dog out.”
The good Samaritan was able to locate Vanessa from the identification tag on the dog’s collar.
“He noticed the number and called me,” she said.
Her Toyota Corolla was impounded by Miami Police for evidence. Vanessa is just glad that she now has her pup back.
Oreo is believed to have been inside the car with the windows up for three days.
“He was there since they stole the car,” Vanessa said. “They didn’t throw him out the car or anything. I’m very thankful he’s healthy, he’s alive, he made it.”
If you have any information on this armed carjacking, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.
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