Staten Island Family Offers Reward For Return Of Sick Boy's Missing Maltese 'Charlie'
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A grandmother is searching for her grandson's therapeutic dog.
The Maltese has been missing since Saturday, and the family fears that he's been stolen.
As CBS2's Magdalena Doris reported, an online plea to help find Charlie has over 19,000 views on Facebook, and the Labetti family is hopeful it will help.
Charlie is one of Roman Labetti's best friends. The boy has tumors on his chest and has had twenty surgeries in five years.
"The dog would come, he'd pull his sock, he'd throw the ball, he'd throw the sock. It gave him like physical therapy," Roman's grandmother said.
She and her husband came home after dinner on Saturday night, to find their door unlocked, the gate open and Charlie gone.
"He usually greets us at the top of the steps," she said, "I don't want to believe that he's dead. Somebody rode by and picked him up. Thank you, but please give him back."
Four days later, Roman's grandmother is hard at work canvassing her Staten Island neighborhood.
Roman was in Philadelphia on Tuesday, going through yet another surgery.
"As soon as he comes out he's gonna say 'did grandma get the dog? Did grandma get Charlie yet? I am so brokenhearted," she said.
Roman is expected home on Friday. Hopefully Charlie will be there too.
The Labetti family has offered a $500 reward for Charlie's return.
