Lady Gaga’s dog walker shot, bulldogs stolen
LOS ANGELES — Lady Gaga’s dog walker was shot and two of the singer’s French bulldogs were stolen in Hollywood during an armed robbery, police said. The singer is offering a $500,000 reward.
The dog walker was shot once Wednesday night and is expected to survive his injuries, according to Los Angeles Police Capt. Jonathan Tippett, commanding officer of the department’s elite Robbery-Homicide Division. The man was walking three of Lady Gaga’s dogs at the time, but one escaped. That dog has been recovered safely.
Tippett told The Associated Press that the dogs belong to pop star Lady Gaga. It’s not yet clear if the walker was targeted because of his celebrity client, the captain said.
Lady Gaga is offering the reward for the return of her dogs — whose names are Koji and Gustav — with no questions asked, according to her representative. An email address for tips, KojiandGustav@gmail.com, has been set up. The singer is currently in Rome to film a movie.
Police were initially called to North Sierra Bonita Avenue, a street off the famed Sunset Boulevard, around 9:40 p.m. Wednesday following several 911 calls reporting a man screaming and the sound of a gunshot, said LAPD Capt. Steven Lurie.
The victim, whose name has not been released, was walking the dogs when a white Nissan Altima pulled over and two men tried to steal the animals, police said.
“Two suspects exited the vehicle and demanded the victim turn over the dogs at gunpoint. The victim struggled with the suspects and was shot once by one of the suspects,” a police statement said. The suspects nabbed two of the three dogs and drove off.
French bulldogs can cost thousands of dollars.