NJ Woman Swipes Dog From Front Yard, Charged With Theft: Police

PASSAIC COUNTY, NJ — An Essex County woman is facing charges after being accused of stealing a family’s dog from their Passaic County front yard, police say.

On April 5, authorities learned that a Clifton family’s Shih Tzu and Yorkshire terrier mix, Rocky, had been swiped from the front lawn after getting out of the house.

Rocky ran around the neighborhood for a bit, near the roadway several times, before returning to his front yard. Surveillance video showed a woman and a boy taking Rocky from the yard and getting back into their car, authorities say.

Police added that their pair did not attempt to contact the home's residents or neighbors after taking Rocky.

The woman in the video, Mery Cepeda-Chevalier, 29, of Newark, was eventually identified by police, according to officials.

She was pulled over in Passaic County, and police followed her back to her Newark home where she cooperated and turned Rocky over to investigators, police said.

Authorities were able to reunite Rocky with his family on April 8, police said. NorthJersey.com said Rocky’s owner, William Chan, was on vacation when Rocky went missing. Rocky was being looked after by a family member when he wandered outside.

The report added that Rocky was unharmed when detectives returned him to his owners.

After a month-long investigation, Cepeda-Chevalier was charged with third-degree theft of a domestic companion animal. If convicted, she could face prison time and thousands of dollars in fines.