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Mystery surrounds 2 dogs found alone at beach
Two dogs were found alone at Will Rogers State Beach alongside personal belongings, raising concerns about what happened to their owner.
LOS ANGELES COUNTY, Calif. - Two dogs found alone at Will Rogers State Beach have sparked a mystery that one Good Samaritan fears could be connected to something more serious.
On July 9, Paolo Moreno says he found two dogs left behind near Temescal Canyon Boulevard. Inside a nearby women's restroom, he says he also found a bag containing dog food, a swimsuit and other personal belongings. The unusual discovery left him worried that the dogs' owner may not have abandoned them intentionally.
"My biggest concern is that something happened to the owner of the dogs," Moreno said. "I think it's possible that there was an abduction here at the beach."
Moreno says he contacted the Los Angeles Police Department and spoke with a senior lead officer. According to Moreno, the officer told him the circumstances under which the belongings were found were unusual and did not appear consistent with someone simply abandoning their dogs. Moreno says the officer also told him there were no missing-person reports from the beach that day.
At first, Moreno thought the dogs might belong to someone experiencing homelessness, so he checked nearby homeless encampments. He says no one recognized the dogs or knew who they belonged to.
Moreno says the dogs are clean, healthy and were wearing matching, expensive harnesses. Hoping to identify their owner, he took them to a vet, but neither dog is microchipped.
When that led nowhere, Moreno searched the area for surveillance cameras.
"I came and looked. There's no cameras out here at all," he said.
Moreno has been posting flyers around the area, hoping someone will recognize the dogs, identify their owner and help solve the mystery.
"It's scary," Moreno said. "God forbid something happened to her. I have two adult daughters, and it's really concerning."
He hopes sharing the dogs' story will generate leads.
"Hopefully, by sharing the dogs and getting visibility, somebody in the greater Los Angeles area recognizes these dogs, and we learn that nothing bad happened to the owner," Moreno said.