Puppy stolen on Chicago train; man says suspect tried to sell dog for $500

CHICAGO -- Police are looking for the two men they said held up a pet owner at knifepoint on a Chicago train and snatched a two-month-old puppy.

Investigators said the two men got on the train just before midnight Wednesday. They approached a passenger with a black and white puppy in a pink carrier, allegedly threatened the passenger with a knife and took the dog.

Police said they exited the train at the 35th and Archer in Chicago's McKinley Park neighborhood.

CTA passenger Christopher Abair said he was on an Orange Line train late Tuesday night, heading home from his job as a flight attendant, when he saw a man enter the rail car carrying the dog.

He said the man was very aggressive about trying to sell the puppy.

"I told the gentleman, 'Can I please offer money for this dog?' I offered him $100. I said, 'Can I please have this dog? I will take this dog.' He said, 'No, this is a very special dog. This is a special breed of dog. I will only take $500 cash, now,'" Abair said.

He said the man treated the dog roughly, throwing the carrier to the ground and causing the pup to cry out.

Abair said the man was still trying to sell the dog on the train when he transferred to another line at Roosevelt.

He said the man he saw with the puppy was African American, about six feet tall and weighs about 180 pounds. He said the man had shoulder-length dreadlocks, a white t-shirt that said "DOC" on the back, blue jeans and black loafers.

Investigators are looking at surveillance video to learn more about the suspects.