Beloved service dog shot and killed in armed robbery attempt
An 8-year-old service dog was shot and killed Thursday afternoon when two armed men, one wearing a black ski mask, approached the woman walking him and tried to steal her cell phone, Columbia police chief Skip Hilbrook said in a news release.
“I haven’t even gotten to cry yet. I am so upset,” the owner told Columbia police.
Harlem had been with his owner since the German Rottweiler was a puppy. He was a registered and certified service dog who helped calm his owner and ease depression, the owner told investigators.
The shooting occurred on the 3600 block of Ardincaple Drive, near the Falling Springs Apartment complex on Falling Springs Road.
The dog had an estimated value of $3,000, a cold calculation that doesn’t come close to the loss the owner expressed.
“I cannot explain how much I loved him. That was my baby.”
The two men who shot the dog are thought to have left the scene in a older-model blue pickupwith a chrome tool box in the truck bed, Holbrook said.
One of the men is described as a black male last seen wearing a black hoodie and black ski mask. The other man is described as a slim black male in his mid-20s last seen wearing a sky blue windbreaker, police said.
The dog’s owner, who wanted to remain anonymous, “is trying to determine how he can adopt another service dog to assist with daily activities,” Holbrook said.
If you have information about this crime or the two men being sought, you are asked to call CrimeStoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC, text CRIMES (274637) and mark the beginning of the message with “TIPSC” followed by the tip information, or log onto www.midlandscrimestoppers.com and click on the red “Submit a tip” tab.
This story was originally published December 18, 2015 at 5:25 PM.