Twiglet the dachshund’s millionaire owner reveals ‘horrific’ moment she discovered the tiny pup had been stolen by hammer-wielding burglar in ‘targeted’ home invasion
A stolen dachshund’s millionaire owner has revealed the ‘horrifying’ moment she discovered her puppy had been stolen by a hammer-wielding burglar in a ‘targeted’ home invasion.
Twiglet, owned by Jo Vindis, 43, was captured on Wednesday with CCTV footage showing the 16-month-old pup being cornered and taken by a man holding a hammer.
She was later returned to her family after an apparent good Samaritan saw the owner’s appeal, came across the dog and pretended not to know it was Twiglet before paying £700 and returning her to her owners.
Last night Ms Vindis said she was elated her puppy was back safe, telling the BBC: ‘It was horrifying.
‘We sort of realised quite quickly, because the alarm had gone off, that there had been a break in, and my husband was able to watch the video pretty quickly after it happened, so we knew almost immediately that she had been taken.’
A stolen dachshund’s millionaire owner has revealed the ‘horrifying’ moment she discovered her puppy had been stolen by a hammer-wielding burglar in a ‘targeted’ home invasion
Twiglet, owned by Jo Vindis, 43, (pictured) was captured on Wednesday, with CCTV footage showing the 16-month-old pup being cornered and taken by a man holding a hammer
Twiglet belongs to Ms Vindis and her husband Jamie, 47, who is the managing director of Vindis Group Limited, which makes £47million a year.
Their home in Essex – where only the beloved pet was stolen – is worth at least £1million.
The disturbing footage of the dog – who cost £2,000 – being taken went viral after the family desperately shared it online but on Thursday night they received a tip-off.
Ms Vindis said: ‘When my husband said he had her it was yeah, disbelief, elation, just all the emotions.’
Essex Police said inquiries were ongoing and no arrests had so far been made.
Mr Vindis was contacted on Facebook by the apparent good Samaritan who said they saw the appeal and then saw the pet being offered for sale.
It is understood police then went to Bedfordshire to collect the animal.
Mr Vindis is the managing director of motoring business the Vindis Group, which was founded in 1960 by former spitfire pilot Frank Vindis.
Twiglet belongs to Ms Vindis and her husband Jamie, 47, who is the managing director of Vindis Group Limited, which makes £47million a year
Last night Ms Vindis said she was elated her puppy was back safe, telling the BBC: ‘It was horrifying’
Mr Vindis is the managing director of motoring business the Vindis Group, which was founded in 1960 by former spitfire pilot Frank Vindis
Footage showed the moment the alleged thief broke into the family home ‘dressed as a delivery driver to steal the dog’
His wife told the BBC: ‘Thank you to all of the coverage and all of the groups that shared, do DogLost were an amazing help to us as well.
‘She was a bit bewildered last night, but I don’t think there will be any lasting trauma for her.’
Yesterday Ms Vindis told the BBC that she did not think the dog had been specifically targeted.
But she said: ‘But I don’t think it could have been entirely opportunistic. He must have been looking at the properties and saw no-one was in.
‘It is a quiet, rural and there is not a lot of through traffic. The idea that it could have been a dognapping did go through my mind, but we didn’t get a ransom note or anything like that so I don’t think so.’
