FFFOUND! Winston Is Back Home!

As a completely neurotic dog owner, trust me when I say that one of the most harrowing, disastrous scenarios you can possibly ever imagine, is one in which your poor, sweet, lovable dog is lost, roaming the streets by himself far from home. These scenarios don't usually involve incompetent police officers, but the  story of Winston did...and it literally ripped my heart out of my chest when I heard it.

BUT NOW HE'S HOME! Hoooooray!

To refresh your memory, Michael Reinhardt and his girlfriend lost Winston in Prospect Park after the dog got spooked and ran off. A girl found him, and was on her way to Sean Casey Animal Rescue when she encountered a police officer who said he'd take the dog off her hands. The police officer claimed he gave the dog to another couple who claimed that it was theirs. Only apparently that's a gigantic load of bullshit.

From the NYDN:

He and his girlfriend papered the area with fliers. Their shoe-leather search eventually led them to a beat cop from the 77th Precinct in Crown Heights, who told them he had found Winston and given him over to three women riding in a black sedan with Virginia plates.
The officer said the women had approached him and said they owned the pooch, Reinhardt said.

But the family who came forward and returned the dog to Reinhardt after seeing one of his fliers told a far different tale.

"They described the officer approaching them with the dog and asking if they wanted a free dog," Reinhardt told the Daily News. "The cop was walking around trying to give Winston away."

AYFKMWTS!?  

This is really quite a banner couple of weeks for the New York City Police Department. In addition to their ignoring of a 911 call, their dismissive attitude toward another tipster, and their general inability to catch a serial sexual attacker (or two), we can now add dog kidnapping and reckless irresponsibility to the list.

Un-be-lievable.

Anyway, welcome home Winston.