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Missing dog linked to Collier high speed chase

Posted at 10:49 PM, Feb 19, 2017
and last updated 2017-02-20 06:50:22-05

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- A high speed chase in Naples last week ended with a man arrested and a stolen car recovered; but one thing in this case remains unsolved: where is Snuggles the dog?

A woman pleaded to get her dog back, Sunday, after she said her pooch was in the back seat of that stolen car. Ardyce Cooper was visitIng Fort Myers from South Carolina last month when her rescue Shih Tzu, Snuggles, got loose. Cooper said a nice couple called her saying they had her. "They stopped and picked her up, which I'm glad they did," said Cooper.

The couple planned to give the dog back, but that changed after a trip to Target ended with a strange encounter in the parking lot. "She was putting something in the trunk or getting something out of the trunk when these two fellas asked for a ride to Naples," said Cooper. "She said no. They jumped in the car and took off and Snuggles was with her."

Early Thursday morning, that stolen car was found. Collier deputies arrested 33-year-old Antonio D'Angelo after a high speed chase, charging him with Grand Theft Auto. However, at the time of the arrest, Snuggles was not with him. The incident report shows no mention of a dog.

"I just want to know what he did with my dog," Cooper said. "I've gone to three different police stations to ask him what he did with my dog.

Cooper hopes someone D'Angelo knows has Snuggles, or someone found her in the street. She tells Fox 4 she will not go home to South Carolina without closure on the situation. If anyone sees Snuggles, they are urged to call Cooper at 239-826-3395.