A dog was stolen from a Wimbledon pensioner in a violent robbery last week.
Mike Jasper, 66, was walking his sprocker Ted on Cannon Hill Common at 10am on Tuesday 15 December when he was approached by a man in his twenties.
The man started asking questions about Jasper’s dog, then another man came up behind Jasper and pushed him over as they grabbed Ted and made off with him.
His daughter Lucinda Jasper said: “It’s been a really devastating time for us as a family.
“The most disgusting thing about it is that they were laughing as they ran away.
“You hear about dogs being stolen but you don’t expect them to be so violent with it, so I think it’s turned a corner to violence now.”
She said her father has regularly visited Cannon Hill for the last few years and never had any problems there before.
After the men pushed him over, he says they then stood on Jasper’s hands to stop him from grabbing Ted’s lead and he tried to follow them after they ran away, she added.
Ted is microchipped and the family have logged him as stolen.
[Credit: Lucinda Jasper]
They are now launching an online campaign to find Ted, setting up official Facebook and Twitter pages to aid their search.
A Facebook post by Jasper’s friend Susan Childs has been shared 181,000 times.
Lucinda Jasper said: “We’re just doing this whole thing about making him too hot to handle.”
The family’s aim is to get Ted’s pictures known across the UK as they think he could have been taken anywhere by now.
[Credit: Lucinda Jasper]
They hope that those who stole him will see the signs and either return him or let him go.
There is a cash reward for Ted’s safe return and anyone with information on him should call Lucinda Jasper on 07931737047.
After the robbery, Merton police were called to the scene.
They have released a formal appeal for information including a more detailed description of Ted and the men who are suspected of stealing him.
Anyone with information on the crime should call police on 101 or tweet @MetCC quoting 1415109/20.
If you want to make an anonymous report, call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Two months ago a petition to make pet theft a crime in UK law received 500,000 signatures on Change.org.
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