An airman stationed in Japan reported that his dog, Maverick, and his car were stolen by the sitter he had hired while deployed. This person, feeling, well, perhaps overwhelmed or something, took off with the dog and the vehicle.
“I’m trying to find this guy,” Andrew Beckham posted in a Nest alert that he shared on Facebook. “He was house-sitting for me while I was away, and then he just disappeared after taking Maverick and my car.”
Maverick, an 11-year-old Siberian husky, was with the sitter at Beckham’s home in Aurora, Colorado, one night when he was taken outside and loaded into Beckham’s Subaru Forester from 2014.
Beckham provided a photo of the suspected thief and noted that he had even captured video of the individual driving off with his dog and vehicle.
“The sitter is, well, he seems a bit paranoid and unstable. He ran away four days ago without notifying me, taking my car and dog with him,” Beckham wrote on Facebook.
According to Beckham, he had found this sitter through Trusted House Sitters, a service meant to connect pet owners with reliable caretakers. He reached out to the company for assistance in locating them both.
“He hasn’t been found yet, but he has my dog,” Beckham added.
Footage from a doorbell camera reportedly showed the unidentified man leading Maverick out into the driveway at night. Beckham explained that it was a bit tricky to see clearly on the camera since it was dark.
In a bizarre twist, the house sitter allegedly called 911 about an hour before vanishing, claiming someone was trying to break into the house. “He seemed scared,” Beckham said, unsure what exactly prompted that fear.
Maverick, who weighs around 60 pounds, is missing a toe on his front left paw, has mild arthritis, and has one blue eye and one brown eye. Beckham expressed how much he misses his companion. “It feels like I’ve lost a piece of home. Maverick was my buddy throughout my deployment. Losing him is just devastating,” he shared.
The dog has a microchip and is listed on numerous lost pet platforms. Beckham cautioned the public, “Do not chase, call, or whistle, as that might frighten him and put you at risk.”
Neighbors have rallied together to help search for Maverick and the sitter, driving around Colorado looking for Beckham’s missing car. Some residents even printed and distributed missing posters in nearby areas. “I’ve got to help; my husband’s in the Air Force, so this hits home for me,” said neighbor Carla Wise. “I drove to the airport and checked two parking lots, both west and east, but I’m really focused on finding the dog.”
“He’s out there. We’re going to find him,” she concluded.
