A 19-year-old has admitted that he swiped a pricey dog from a woman near her St. Paul home, a theft that resonated with the public and led to his arrest and her being reunited with the French bulldog-Boston terrier mix two days later.

Lonnie Ray Jenkins of St. Paul pleaded guilty as charged to first-degree aggravated robbery on Friday in Ramsey District Court for stealing 7-year-old Clementine the afternoon of April 24 in the city’s Payne-Phalen area. Police continue to search for his alleged accomplice in the theft.

According to Jenkins’ plea agreement, the prosecution will argue for prison time at his sentencing, which is scheduled for Nov. 4, while his defense attorney will ask for a downward departure to probation.

Court records show Jenkins was adjudicated delinquent — the juvenile version of being found guilty — in two Ramsey County theft-related felony cases in 2022.

At the time of the dog theft, Jenkins was wanted in connection with two aggravated robberies that occurred six weeks earlier in south Minneapolis; the case remains open in Hennepin County District Court.

A second open case filed in May charges Jenkins with allegedly stealing a wallet from a car he broke into in south Minneapolis on the same day of the Minneapolis robberies and then using the victim’s credit card at a Lake Street restaurant.

Jenkins remains at Hennepin County Jail in lieu of $100,000 bail.

Would-be buyer recognized dog

According to the Ramsey County criminal complaint, Clementine’s owner, Greta Deane, reported at 4 p.m. April 24 that two males followed directly behind her as she walked the dog. When she crossed the street, they followed. They asked her about Clementine and tried to steal her dog in the area of York Avenue and Arkwright Street, but Deane screamed and held onto the leash.

Clementine, a French bulldog-Boston terrier mix, was taken from her owner while on a walk April 24, 2024, in St. Paul. (Courtesy of the St. Paul Police Department)

One of the males pushed Deane to the ground and the other grabbed Clementine, the complaint says. They ran away.

Surveillance video showed two males walking in the neighborhood with masks on their faces and one said, “Darius, hurry up,” on a phone call. Soon after, someone in a maroon sport-utility vehicle picked up the dognappers.

Deane was worried about what would happen to Clementine because she needs daily prescription medication. She spread the word about Clementine being missing, including by posting flyers and speaking with the Pioneer Press.

Deane received a call from a man who saw a dog he believed was Clementine in the 500 block of Selby Avenue in St. Paul. He said the dog was “anxious and sitting in a corner,” according to the complaint.

An investigator then spoke to the caller who said a male had asked if he was interested in buying the dog for $700. He said he went to the Selby Avenue address and saw the dog, which he described as appearing to be sick and lethargic. After he left, he spotted a missing dog flyer for Clementine at a nearby store.

Lonnie Ray Jenkins (Courtesy of the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office)

Police identified Jenkins, who was 18 at the time, as a resident of the Selby Avenue address.

The SUV used to pick up the two males matches Jenkins’ mother’s vehicle, and cellphone data placed Jenkins’ phone in the area where Deane was robbed, the complaint says.

Officers went to the address with a search warrant on April 26 and found Clementine on a living room couch. Clementine was reunited with Deane the same day and she told the Pioneer Press she was “profoundly grateful and deeply thankful. I couldn’t imagine not getting her back.”

A target for thieves

French bulldogs have become a target for thieves around the country because of their popularity and their value.

In a high-profile 2021 case, Lady Gaga’s two French bulldogs were stolen in Los Angeles at gunpoint from the singer’s dog walker, who was shot as he struggled with two attackers. The dogs were returned to police two days later, and the man recovered from his injuries. Five people were arrested and charged for their alleged roles in the shooting and dognapping.

Last year, a Maplewood woman reported that someone swiped her French bulldog off the front steps of her home. She told police she paid $10,000 for the French bulldog, which she had named Pablo.

A woman was captured on video surveillance at the front door and taking the dog.

Three days later, Pablo’s owner received a Facebook message from someone telling her that she must pay $500 if she wanted the dog back, according to a criminal complaint against the perpetrators. From Facebook photos, officers identified the person who sent the ransom note as Christopher Sherman Brigham, 26, of Minneapolis.

Pablo’s owner later received a call from a man who refused to identify himself, but said “Chris” stole Pablo. He said “Chris” and the woman on the surveillance video “scout out dogs who are lost or run away then take the dogs and either sell them for profit or sell them back to the owners for a reward or finder’s fee,” the complaint says.

Related Articles

Boy, 14, wounded in shooting outside St. Paul high school

Driver in Chisago County crash that injured girl claimed he wasn’t driving, complaint says

Lawsuit settled after murder victim’s parents say Ramsey County, others didn’t properly supervise boyfriend

Argument between man and woman led to Minneapolis hit-and-run that killed 16-year-old girl, charges say

Woman dies in Hugo home and, after search, sheriff’s office takes her 45-year-old son into custody

Pablo’s owner then took a call from a woman who said Brigham had the dog. Investigators called the number and spoke with Chanessa Rena Gipson, 35, of St. Paul, who said she took the dog because it had been running into traffic. She said Brigham then took the dog to his home.

In December, Brigham was sentenced to one year and nine months in prison after pleading guilty to aiding and abetting felony theft for his role in the incident.

Gipson was sentenced on Tuesday to two years of probation after pleading guilty to aiding and abetting gross misdemeanor theft.

Pablo has yet to be found.