Stolen husky puppy returned to owner, who police then arrested in connection to South Bay shooting
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (KGO) -- A man has been arrested in connection with a shooting that took place this week in Mountain View, after detectives were able to piece together that a stolen puppy named Rambo was a crucial link in the case.
Video posted above is from a previous report.
Around 1 p.m. Wednesday, officers responded to reports of gunfire at Rengstorff Park, on the 200 block of South Rengstorff Avenue, police said.
During the investigation, officers learned two people suffered minor injuries, but the shooter remained at large.
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So how does this connect to the stolen puppy? It turns out, Rambo's owner ended up being the suspect in this shooting.
It started two days prior, on Monday around 8 p.m.
Officers responded to reports of a stolen, 8-week-old husky named Rambo from an apartment complex on the 300 block of Escuela Avenue.
Rambo is owned by a family that includes a man identified as 19-year-old Reynaldo Medina of Mountain View.
Witnesses to the shooting Wednesday described a man matching Medina's description.
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"While detectives were working to confirm Medina's involvement in the shooting, late Wednesday night, an employee at a restaurant in Redwood City was watching the news and recognized Rambo, who happened to be in their restaurant at the time," police said. "The employee called the Redwood City Police Department, who in turn called us, and Rambo was safely brought back to Mountain View."
The police department cared for Rambo on Thursday while detectives continued to investigate Medina's possible connection to the shooting.
"Ultimately, through the course of our investigation, officers confirmed Medina, Rambo's owner, was the suspect in the shooting at Rengstorff Park on Wednesday afternoon," police said.
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Police say so far in their investigation, it appears Medina may have been at the park looking for Rambo, but are still looking into why he opened fire.
Medina was arrested Thursday afternoon at the Mountain View Police Department on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and assault with a firearm. He was booked into the Santa Clara County Jail. Police say a gun believed to be used in the shooting was also recovered.
"I continue to be incredibly impressed with the tenacity and dedication by our investigative teams tackling these cases and putting the pieces together," said Chief Chris Hsiung. "This is a prime example of good, old-fashioned police work, and that work paid off."
Rambo was safely returned to the Medina family late Thursday night. Police say he is "healthy" and "doing well."
The police department says it will continue the investigation into why Rambo was stolen.
