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Arts & Entertainment

Celebrities Search For Beverly Hills Dog Kidnapped By Pregnant Woman

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There's a $5,000 reward for a little dog that was allegedly snatched from outside a Beverly Hills boutique yesterday by a pregnant thief, and George Lopez, Hillary Duff and newlywed Lance Bass are on the case. This is the sort of story that could only happen in sun-bleached Los Angeles. Charlie, an adorable white Maltese, is well-known to his Beverly Hills neighbors, ABC reports. His human, Julia Cohen, has owned Switch Boutique at 238 S. Beverly Drive with her sister for the last nine years. Charlie often hangs around outside, sipping from his water bowl and greeting his human and dog friends. He never strays far, wears a red collar and is microchipped, according to KTLA.

A surveillance video from yesterday shows a woman in a yellow top and young girl follow Charlie around a corner, then emerge with the woman holding the dog. The pair then walk off with Charlie. Witnesses said the woman was pregnant.

Cohen is offering a sizable reward for the safe return of Charlie and seeks nothing more than to just have him back. Earlier reports had the reward at $2,000, but Cohen later told ABC she'd pay $5,000. She says has also hired a private detective, and has even offered that if the dognapper wants to give Charlie to a friend and have the friend return him, she'll still pay the reward.

Hillary Duff, comedian George Lopez and Lance Bass have all taken to social media to spread news of Charlie's kidnapping. Lopez and Bass are animal lovers, who we recently saw at the World Dog Awards. Lopez—who starred in Beverly Hills Chihuahua—hosted the CW award show, while Bass appeared with his new husband and two of their dogs. Many of the celebrities involved in the search for Charlie have met him many times.

"Charlie's a staple here. Everyone in Beverly Hills knows him," Duff said, according to Entertainment Tonight.

Anyone with information can call Switch at 310-860-1650 or contact the Beverly Hills Police Department.

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