JACKSONVILLE BEACH, FL (DUVAL COUNTY)– A news article news4jax.com posted on news4jax.com reports that a food delivery man was arrested after stealing a 10-month-old teacup poodle from its owner during a delivery.  According to the Jacksonville Beach Police Department, the food delivery driver, a 22-year-old man, was arrested and charged with grand theft a few hours after the dog heist.

The dog's owner stated that the situation was terrible and happy to be home.  According to the owner and the Jacksonville Beach Police Department, the dog's owner ordered a pizza and arranged delivery through the food delivery service Grubhub on Saturday night.  According to the Jacksonville Beach Police Department, the suspect arrived with the pizza at the family's condominium building on First Street South.  According to police, as the delivery driver delivered the pizza, the teacup poodle left the condo, and the suspect allegedly picked up the poodle and then hid the dog in his delivery bag.

Block said the food delivery driver was caught on surveillance video walking into an elevator with the dog before leaving in a blue Ford Focus. Police said Chilito was able to exit the building by bypassing the lobby night staff on duty.  The Jacksonville Beach police stated that the dog theft was caught on surveillance camera video.

The Jacksonville Beach Police Department stated the suspect's arrest happened quickly, and the officers found the missing dog at the suspect's home a couple of hours after the theft.

According to the news report, there were hundreds and hundreds of individuals searching for the dog.  One of the couple's friends' 76-year-old grandmother was driving around looking for the missing dog.  The couple is very thankful for the help of all those who helped search for their dog. 

The suspect's arrest records revealed that the suspect was booked into the Duval County jail at around 2:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. 

While Jacksonville Beach Police Department announced that the family ordered their pizza using Grubhub, a Grubhub spokesperson stated that the suspect who was arrested was not a driver for Grubhub driver and the suspect has never worked for Grubhub.  According to Grubhub spokesperson, the suspect was allegedly using someone else's Hubgrub driver account without that Grubhub driver's permission or knowledge.

According to the Grubhub spokesperson, the company is "shocked and appalled" by the suspect's behavior, and Grubhub does not tolerate this type of conduct.  Grubhub confirmed the suspect fraudulently misused their platform.  Grubhub stated that they permanently banned the driver from their platform and will support law enforcement's efforts to prosecute both the suspect and the account holder to the full extent of the law.   Grubhub stated that they conduct rigorous background checks before contracting with any food delivery drivers.  The company stated that they are committed to regularly reviewing and improving their business practices to ensure safety and prevent fraud.