Neighbor’s little dog helps police find robbery suspect’s hiding spot, Texas cops say

A robbery suspect in Texas likely would’ve gotten away Wednesday if not for a little neighbor dog named Cooper that followed him when he left his home, police said.

A woman frantically called police about 8:45 a.m. to report that two men had shoved her to the ground and stole $60 outside an H-E-B grocery store in Lufkin, Texas, according to a police Facebook post. Officers rushed to the scene and started looking for the robbers, but couldn’t find them, police said.

Then they saw a small dog in a wooded area “wagging his tail excitedly” and trying to get into some thick brush, police said.

“We could tell from the dog’s behavior that someone was in there,” said one of the officers, according to the news release. “Without that dog’s help, we never would have found the suspect.”

The officers located Lufkin resident Christopher Huitt, 36, and the woman identified him as one of the men who attacked her, police said. A second robbery suspect hasn’t been found, police said.

Before going to jail, Huitt told the officers he knew the 3-year-old dog named Cooper belonged to his neighbor, police said. Huitt said Cooper must have followed him after walking away from his house that morning, police said.

Cooper was then reunited with his owner, who “got quite the kick out of his escapades,” police said.

Despite catching a suspect, the woman’s money is still missing, police said.

This is the second time this week that police say they arrested Huitt. He also is accused of ripping a purse from a woman near a local church, police said.

He is now jailed on a $150,000 bond, records show.

Meanwhile, Cooper might want to put in his application to join the K-9 unit because the police department is now calling him Cooper Trooper and a police dog.

This story was originally published August 7, 2019 at 2:01 PM with the headline "Neighbor’s little dog helps police find robbery suspect’s hiding spot, Texas cops say."