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Police Search For Robbers Who Stole Dog From S.I. Family

NEW YORK (CBS 2) -- Police on Staten Island were looking for burglars who stole a family's dog, Kristin Thorne reports.

Richie Rienel is developmentally disabled. A few years ago, his mom and sister realized a dog may do him some good.

"She distracts him. She keeps him happy," said Betsy Reinel, Richie's sister.

They bought Pookie, a yorkiepoo, and the connection was instant.

Richie, however, said he was now sad. It's because robbers stole Pookie right from the Rienels' home in Mariners Harbor.

"I want Pookie back," he said.

Betsy said she was sleeping around 8 a.m. and she didn't hear anyone come in. She thinks the robbers broke in their front door.

"I try to stay strong because I don't want him to know how much it hurts but it does it. It hurts a lot," she said.

A few weeks before Pookie was taken, someone broke in and stole jewelry out of their mother Maria's room.

"They take away the little one and all the jewelry, my big one," Maria said.

Betsy plastered signs around her neighborhood but police said they had no leads.

In the meantime, Richie stares out their front window, waiting for Pookie to come home.

"I want him," he said.

"That breaks my heart. That's my brother. He means a lot to me. All I want is to get her back," Betsy said.

Pookie weighs about 14 pounds. She's missing two or three of her front teeth. The Rienel family said they won't press charges against anyone who brings Pookie forward. They just want their dog back.

The Rienels believe the same person who robbed their house the first time is also the person who stole Pookie.

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