Suspect named in Riverside County Animal Shelter break-in

A 42-year-old man was identified Wednesday as a suspect in a weekend break-in at the county animal shelter in Jurupa Valley and the resulting loss of 11 dogs, including four that died.

Riverside County sheriff’s officials said Jason Johnson was captured on surveillance video carrying out the break-in. He is still being sought.

“Mr. Johnson is actively wanted,” sheriff’s Capt. Jason Horton said. “That arrest warrant was walked through the court yesterday. It’s been entered into our system as being active, and several sheriff’s department investigators as we speak are actively attempting to track him down.”

Sheriff’s officials said Johnson went to the facility with plans to take some pit bulls that were quarantined at the shelter. It was unclear if he owned the dogs, which were facing possible euthanasia.

A $35,000 reward is being offered leading to Johnson’s arrest and conviction.

Authorities confirmed Monday that a total of four dogs died as a result of the burglary at the Jurupa Valley Animal Shelter, and seven other canines were set loose or carried off. Animal Services officials said initial reports that a dozen dogs went missing Sunday stemmed from a miscount. The actual number was 10, according to agency spokesman John Welsh.

He said that early Monday morning, one of the missing canines, a pit bull, was found dead, though it wasn’t clear how the animal died. A pit bull mix and a Labrador retriever were recovered alive Sunday night.

The pit bull’s death followed three other burglary-related fatalities. According to Welsh, shelter workers found a dead Yorkshire terrier mix and a dead Chihuahua inside the kennel Sunday morning, and a German shepherd was hit by a car after being turned out of the facility, located at 6851 Van Buren Blvd.

Officials did not immediately determine how the smaller dogs died. According to Welsh, locks on 22 kennel doors were forcibly broken late Saturday night, or during the predawn hours Sunday. Surveillance video showed a man in dark clothing enter the facility. Welsh said Monday that a motive for the break-in and acts of “animal cruelty” remain unclear.