LA woman jumps onto hood of car to stop dognapping as thieves steal her bulldog: Watch

A Los Angeles woman jumped in front of a moving car to stop her French Bulldog from being stolen, riding on the hood before being thrown off as the suspected dognappers escaped, the Los Angeles Police Department said.

Ali Zacharias was eating at a Whole Foods in downtown Los Angeles on Jan. 18 around 3:45 p.m. with her French Bulldog, Onyx when a female suspect picked up her dog and fled, reported the Los Angeles Times.

Zacharias ran after the suspect, chasing her as she went towards a white four door sedan, which was driven by an additional suspect, said the LAPD. As the suspects fled the location, the victim "attempted to stop the suspects by jumping on the hood of the vehicle".

However, Zacharias later fell off the vehicle at a turn and the suspects got away with her dog. She received minor injuries and was treated for minor abrasions by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics, who responded to the location, said the LAPD.

Zacharias did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for a comment.

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'Horrifying': Ali Zacharias details dognapping ordeal

Zacharias told the L.A. Times that her only thought at the point was, “I’m not leaving this car."

She said that she held onto the windshield wipers hoping the suspects would stop driving but they didn't, ramping up the speed to almost 40 miles/hour.

“It was horrifying,” Zacharias, separately told KLTA5. “As [the car] started to go faster and faster I’m like, ‘I’m about to die. This is my death. Right now. I’m about to die.’”

Harrison Pessy, who captured the video of Zacharias clinging to the bonnet, was crossing the street when he heard tires screeching and a woman screaming.

“They sped off and unfortunately took this woman with them,” Pessy told KLTA5. “If someone tried to steal my dog, I’d probably try to kill them myself. It’s devastating that someone would take someone’s animal.”

Police searching for dognapping suspects

While the police have determined only 2 suspects in the robbery, Zacharias told KLTA5 that the car had 4 female passengers and a male driver.

The LAPD has described the suspect, who grabbed the pet, as "a female Black, approximately 25-years-old, wearing a gray hoodie, purple sweatpants, and black shoes".

"The second suspect is described as a male Black, approximately 25 years old. The suspect vehicle is described as a white KIA Forte, four door sedan," said the police.

Onyx remains missing

More than 10 days have passed since the incident but there has been no news of Onyx.

The LAPD said Tuesday that an investigation into the robbery is ongoing, and no updates have been provided by the detectives yet.

The department has also enlisted the public's help in retrieving the kidnapped pet and identifying the suspects involved in the robbery. Anyone with information is requested to contact Central Area Robbery Detective Mazzacano, or Detective Stanziale, at (213) 996-1877. Calls on the weekend or during non-business hours can be directed to 1-877-LAPD-24-7 (1-877-527-3247).

Anonymous tippers can call the LA Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or visit www.lacrimestoppers.org. Lastly, tipsters may also download the “P3 Tips” mobile application and select the LA Regional Crime Stoppers as their local program.

Meanwhile, Zacharias is offering a big reward for whoever brings back her "buddy" home safely, according to the L.A. Times. Anyone with information is requested to contact her at 626-264-7923.

Pet microchip company AKC Reunite reported that French bulldogs have been the most stolen breed since 2020.

In November last year, robbers broke into a Los Angeles area pet shop and stole a dozen French bulldogs valued at more than $100,000.

Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @saman_shafiq7.