North Hollywood family’s dog stolen from backyard

A father says he was putting his son to bed on Dec. 10 when two trespassers unlocked his gate and stole his family’s beloved dog, Domino, from their backyard in North Hollywood.

Surveillance footage captured the dog-napping in action, and Jason Bitonio is now using it to publicly ask the thieves to bring home the 12-year-old French bulldog – no questions asked.

“I usually have my routine where I get out at 8 p.m. and do some things in the backyard, and my dog wasn’t there,” explained Bitonio. “I was like, ‘Where’s my dog?’ He usually follows alongside, like dogs usually do.”

Bitonio told KTLA’s Rachel Menitoff that he is now faced with the heartbreaking task of explaining to his 5-year-old where the Frenchie is, and why someone would do this in the first place.

Surveillance footage from right before 8 p.m. shows a woman with a surgical face mask looking over the family’s fence, unlatching the door, and returning 15 minutes later to steal his precious pet.

“100% they were casing the place to know exactly where he was,” said Bitonio. He believes a second person was on the lookout.

This theft aligns with a trend where dogs, oftentimes French bulldogs, are the target of thieves looking to breed desirable pups, worth anywhere between $2,500 and $12,000.

In some instances, people went to great lengths to snatch the designer dogs, even holding their owners at gunpoint. 

However, Bitonio says Domino is old, has health issues, and is not your typical spry puppy. 

“He’s not lucrative like a young dog, or anything, I’m afraid what’s going to happen to him if he’s of no value to these people,” said Bitonio. “He’s got not that much longer. Let him be home with his family during the holidays. Now, it’s tarnished. There’s an emptiness.”

Bitonio told KTLA that he wants the people who stole Domino to know they can return him, no questions asked. 

He also asked that if anyone recognizes Domino, please contact Bitonio at 747-286-0234 or email jiggz411@gmail.com.