If you have been following this story, you will know that on June 17, 2007 Fathers Day, my home was broken into and 8 Baby Bulldogs were stolen as well as boxes of paperwork from my office. The Fallbrook Sheriffs department’s detective told me 10 days later that it was considered an “Unworkable Case”, translating in my mind that it was up to me. My Dad always taught me that if you want something done right, then do it yourself. It was time to go to work. Since there is no honor among thieves, I decided to offer a substantial reward of $20,000 for the arrest, conviction and return of our babies. Many cruel hearted, jealous people scoffed on some of the internet boards that the puppies were not worth that much stating that I staged the robbery for publicity purposes etc….. People can be really mean if you have not yet noticed. Well guys I guess all of you scoffers were wrong again. (As usual…) I love these little guys and was prepared to do whatever it took to get the person responsible. And I DID……..

Acting on a tip at 9am on July 20th I got in my vehicle and drove to Campo, CA 100 plus miles from my home to find 6 of my sweet babies happy to see me. I could not believe that they were there before my eyes. Mr. Johnson Ly Le (24)of El Cajon, California had rented a shed and stashed the pups in the pen that you see. According to an informant, Johnson Le placed the pups in the sun with no shade and put enough food and water to last 5 days or so. He would disappear for 4-5 days then show up to care for them. (Nice guy huh....) Fortunately one of the neighbors was an animal lover and placed a makeshift cover in the way of a shredded tarp over them for shade and would clean the poop daily. Were it not for this good samaritan, it is almost certain that they would have died from heat exhaustion in the scorching desert sun.

My detective that was assigned to the case was extremely surprised to receive my call stating that the case was solved and I had his man. He drove down and later that evening, Le was arrested. Witnesses say that inside of Le's van at the scene was up to 50 or more dead turtles. I personally saw a stack of Bird Seed Bags in the shack pictured below that mysteriously disappeared when the San Diego PD got on his trail several days later in regards to the stolen birds case that is still pending.

The reward was split between an undisclosed recipient that wishes to remain anonymous and the French Bulldog Rescue Network located in San Diego.

On September 4, 2007 in El Cajon, Ca. East County …….Mr. Johnson Ly Le plead guilty to the felony possession of stolen property. His sentence was as follows;

1. 180 days in County Jail
2. 3 Years Probation 4th Waiver
3. Judge said he cannot possess any animals or be in the animal business.
4. Must be evaluated and treated by a Psychiatrist at his sole expense.
5. Judgment for $13,100 restitution to Todd Howard. (Good Luck Collecting huh….)

Click below to get Johnson Le’s personal profile.
http://www.sdsheriff.net/wij/wijDetail.aspx?BookNum=7754014

Be sure to email Mr. Le as you have a link directly from this San Diego Sheriff site. The information contained within is public information. If this story pisses you off, then maybe you can pay Mr. Le a visit in jail....Send him some fan mail.....Do whatever you can to ensure he does not continue his life of crime at the expense of helpless animals. Call me if I can be of any assistance to you. It would be nice to get some news coverage of this.

I feel that this was an extremely light sentence for Mr. Le seeing that he has had past animal abuse charges against him such as 66 malnourished dogs in his garage as well as a cruelty to animals charge in the past 3 years. He drives to Oklahoma and Missouri area purchasing and or stealing dogs, then drives them back to California to sell to the pet stores, swap meets or anywhere he can turn a buck. He has been doing this for years and to his misfortune, he chose to steal from someone who had the wherewithal and tenacity to track him down. He will not stop until he is stopped by you. If Mr. Le gets one more conviction then he is off to state prison. That’s where you come in.

While Mr. Le sits in jail, he has another case mounting against him. I was contacted by Mr. Paul Colo who is a zoo keeper at the San Diego zoo. His detective found me because both of our telephone numbers appeared on Johnson Le's phone bill as he had placed numerous calls to both of us just days before each respective thieft occured. Johnson Le contacted Paul in the same manner that he contacted me 3 days before my bulldogs were stolen trying to establish when I was going to be away from home. Le called Paul again and again, obtaining a little more information each time about his schedule, the same as he did me. Paul went to work and the birdies flew away. The exact situation that happened to me. By the way he was not acting alone. He had someone follow me to ensure that I was gone and others came in and took the dogs. Looking back, he was more cleaver than myself. I should have picked up on his line of questioning.

You may say if he goes to state prison then you won't get your $13,000 restitution. I could care less. I would much rather see Paul Colo get his birds back and Le go away than the $13 K. Paul raised these birds from babies and is just sick over it. He is a great guy and does not deserve this.

If you have any information regarding the whereabouts to these Birds, please don't hesitate to call Paul at 619-518-5140. He promises to keep your name anonymous.

I still have 2 French Bulldog puppies missing. Please any information that you may have I will gladly compensate you graciously for.

Floyd (L) and Octavio (R) are still missing. Both were born on 3/27/07and are brothers. If you have unknowingly purchased them from Le or any pet shop, please let me know. I promise not to try and take them from you, as you are also a victim but would have great peace of mind knowing that they are safe. Warm Regards, Todd Howard 760-580-6084