Tupelo woman warns others about scammers after family pet goes missing

TUPELO, Miss. (WCBI) – A Tupelo woman who was looking for her family’s missing dog became the target of a scammer, and she has a warning for other pet owners.

Earlier this week, Toni Gough Doyle and her husband Kevin Doyle discovered their American bulldog, Diesel, had made his way out of their yard. The Doyles put notices on Facebook, and quickly got a response from someone who claimed Diesel had been picked up by a friend.

They also claimed to have given their friend money for food and a bed for the dog. However, they asked for $65 to cover their expenses and even provided Apple Pay information.

Toni Gough Doyle tried to get more information but was not successful. Although she never sent the scammer any money, she wanted other pet owners to know there were people waiting to take advantage of others.

“It kind of caught me off guard. I got excited and then my heart was broken all over again. Just retelling the story kind of makes me sad, thinking about how somebody could do this. So, there are some people who would easily give the money and, okay, ‘tell me where he is’, but I stopped for a second, took a deep breath, and said ‘This isn’t right’. Nobody would ask for money upfront like this, so just be cautious and know there are people trying to take advantage of you in your vulnerable time,” said Toni Gough Doyle.

We have an update on this story. Diesel was spotted by a neighbor. He is now back with his owners. We did talk to authorities who said any scam could be prosecuted if the suspect can be tracked down.

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