Aurora man charged in Naperville puppy theft

A $50,000 arrest warrant has been issued for the Aurora man charged with stealing a 12-week-old Pomeranian puppy named Bella last month from the Naperville Petland.

Benjamin Ocasio Jr., 27, of the 200 block of Spruce Street in Aurora, has been charged with retail theft according to DuPage County court records.

A man identified as Ocasio and a 27-year-old female relative entered the Petland in the Fox River Commons shopping center, near Aurora Avenue and Route 59, around 4 p.m. Sept. 4 and asked to play with Bella, said the store's owner, Carl Swanson.

Naperville Police Cmdr. Jason Arres said both were quickly identified by the store's surveillance footage and were interviewed shortly after the theft.

An employee put the man, woman and Bella in a socialization room to play, and two different pet counselors checked in on the couple while they interacted with the dog, Swanson said after Bella was discovered missing.

Arres said police learned during the investigation that the puppy may have been dumped in the backyard of a home near New York and Root streets in Aurora.

While Bella doesn't have any tags, she is microchipped so if she ends up at a shelter, she can be scanned and returned to Petland. Bella is a purebred Pomeranian, and costs about $2,500.

If Ocasio is captured or turns himself in, he will have to post 10 percent of the $50,000 warrant amount to be released.

Anyone with information on Bella's whereabouts is asked to call Naperville police at (630) 420-8511.