Woman Caught Allegedly Stealing From Animal Charity Fundraiser

A local charity is looking for a woman who was allegedly caught by security cameras stealing from their fundraiser.

The Hudson Valley Animal Rescue and Sanctuary recently held a pet supply yard sale to help pay for the care of the animals in their shelter. During the event, the charity claims that a customer waited until no one was looking and took a wallet and phone belonging to one of the volunteers. It turns out that the wallet contained all of the proceeds from that day's sale.

Surveillance video shows a blonde woman in a light blue sweatshirt walk up to the unmanned table and quickly grab something. She is shown shoving the item or items into a back pocket before leaving. A still image of the woman in question arriving at the sale shows her driving a white Kia with an old-style, white New York State license plate. Unfortunately, the vehicle was too far away to make out the number.

A posting from the charity says that the volunteer tracked her stolen phone online and found it a smashed a mile away on the side of the road. The empty wallet was also discovered with all of the donations missing along with the owner's ID and credit cards.

Town of Poughkeepsie police have been alerted to the alleged crime, but without a license plate number, the charity says that there's little that can be done. The animal rescue is seeking the help of the public for more information. If you can identify the woman in the photograph, Hudson Valley Animal Rescue is asking you to please contact the Town of Poughkeepsie Police.

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