Detroit police are searching for a woman accused of swiping a young gray cat from a Downtown Detroit pet store after allegedly tucking the animal inside what looked like a lunch box and walking out the front door on foot. The theft happened just after lunchtime on September 11 at Premier Pet Supply, in the 1500 block of Washington Boulevard, according to police.
The Detroit Police Department says the suspect is a woman believed to be in her late 20s, last seen wearing glasses, a white-striped t-shirt, blue jean shorts, tan slides, pink headphones and a small black crossbody purse. As reported by CBS Detroit, investigators say she took the cat from the store, placed it in what appeared to be a lunch box, and left on foot around 12:30 p.m. The cat is described only as young and dark- or light-gray.
The Washington Boulevard storefront isn't just a retail shop. The 3,000-square-foot store opened in July 2022 inside the City Club Apartments development overlooking Grand Circus Park. The location was built specifically to serve urban pet owners living in downtown high-rises, according to DBusiness Magazine. It also serves as a venue for adoption events.
A Regional Adoption Hub, Not Just a Shop
A Regional Adoption Hub, Not Just a Shop Beyond its adoption events, the Washington Boulevard location hosts organized events with regional rescue groups, including Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit. The chain behind the store, Premier Pet Supply, is actively expanding across the region — the company announced plans just a day before this incident came to light, on October 1, to open a new storefront on Gratiot Avenue in Roseville.
Anyone with information is urged to contact the Detroit Police Department's Third Precinct Detective Unit at 313-596-1340, or to reach Crime Stoppers at 800-773-2587.
What Charges Could the Suspect Face
Michigan law treats the alleged theft first as a property crime, and the penalties scale with the value of the property stolen. Under Michigan Compiled Laws Section 750.356, theft of property valued under $200 is a misdemeanor carrying up to 93 days in jail and fines up to $500 or triple the property's value, according to the Michigan Legislature. If the stolen property is valued between $200 and $1,000, the same statute allows for a misdemeanor charge of up to one year in prison and fines up to $2,000 or triple the property's value.
Pet Theft Is a Growing, Hard-to-Solve Problem
The Detroit case fits into a troubling national pattern. Data reported by the Royal Examiner in February found that pet thefts nationwide have risen roughly 40% compared with 2022 levels, while the American Kennel Club reports that roughly 12% of lost pets reported to the organization are confirmed stolen.
Microchipping and keeping contact information current are recommended, but the same report found that about 35% of microchipped animals nationwide have outdated owner contact information, complicating recovery efforts for shelters like Michigan Humane. It remains unknown whether the cat taken from Premier Pet Supply was microchipped, and police have not said whether additional security footage has been recovered to help identify the suspect.
