Benjamin Friedenberg
Soquel resident Benjamin Friedenberg has been arrested for dog theft twice by Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s for his involvement two missing dogs, the first on March 12 and again for a second incident on March 27.
In the first case, after offering to train a friend’s dog, a German shepherd named Thor, and accepting $1,500 for the training, Friedenberg refused to return the dog once the allotted training time had passed.
He was arrested on charges of embezzlement over $400 (PC 503) and grand theft of an animal (PC 487G), both felonies.
Thor (left) and Huckleberry
A second arrest was made for a nearly identical incident, the second dog a Catahoula Leopard Dog named Huckleberry. Huckleberry is redish-brown and has one green and one blue eye. The second case added charges of stealing an animal and theft by false pretenses.
Both animals are still missing.
This is an ongoing investigation and if you have any information regarding this case or Thor’s whereabouts please call detective Jacob Pruger at (831) 454-7096.