Lincoln man reunited with his stolen dog after almost two years

A Lincoln man was treated with a Christmas miracle this week after he was reunited with his long lost dog almost two years after he was stolen.

It was on May 25, 2017, when Sunte Souvannasap’s Doberman, Barry, was snatched off the street in Providence. Now, his exhaustive search paid off when he was reunited with his dog Wednesday night.

Souvannasap said the whole thing began when his brother took Barry for a walk.

“[My brother] was robbed off of Elmwood Avenue in Providence,” Souvannasap said. “I just felt like if I kept looking for him, someday he would be here.”

The crooks ended up taking off with Barry. Ever since that day, Souvannasap launched a tireless search for his best friend.

Souvannasap said he routinely checked in with local shelters, police stations, parks, and ads online for Dobermans, praying for any clue to where Barry might be.

“Every other month I would check CraigsList,” he said. “I’d check into New York. I’d check into Massachusetts, I’d check in Rhode Island [and] New Hampshire.”

This week, one day after Christmas, Souvannasap responded to an ad on Craigslist for a Doberman in New Bedford. He said after he called the seller, he knew it was Barry right away.

“I reached out to this woman, I had her identify certain things like his right paw was scarred when he was a puppy,” he said. “It just fit the exact description of my dog.”

Another giveaway for the Lincoln man was the fact that Barry had a bald spot on his tail, and the way his ears were cropped as a puppy was unique to certain Dobermans.

Souvannasap went to New Bedford and was finally reunited with Barry. He said even after almost two years being apart, Barry recognized him right away.

“He saw me, he sniffed me,” Souvannasap said. “He just started jumping all over me and licking me and stuff.”

Souvannasap called it a Christmas miracle and the two are ready to pick up right where they left off.

“I just want to spoil him, I guess. I want to make him feel like he’s loved, that he wasn’t just abandoned,” he said. “It was like the best moment of my life.”

The seller in New Bedford said she got the Doberman from a man living in Cumberland. 

Souvannasap said he filed a police report with Cumberland to see where that man got the dog.