Former Amazon delivery man found guilty of stealing Encinitas woman’s dog

Elizabeth Ireland, Times of San Diego

March 17, 2023

A former Amazon delivery driver who stole an Encinitas woman’s dog while delivering a package was sentenced Thursday to a year of probation.

Dena Vindiola, 37, was arrested last October about three weeks after her golden retriever Finn disappeared from her owner’s Hollyridge Drive home. As part of her probation, Vindiola was forced to comply with a number of conditions, including performing her 10 days of community service, which included caring for animals, staying away from San Diego County dog ​​parks, and no dogs allowed. must obey.

According to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, on October 9, 2022, Dennis Repenhagen’s dog went missing after his family left the garage door open.

On October 26, home camera surveillance footage showed a woman, believed to be an Amazon driver delivering packages to her home in Rappenhagen, driving with Finn in her car. was discovered in

After video footage of Finn’s theft aired on local news, the sheriff’s department received a tip from someone who recognized Bindiola, who was arrested Oct. 29 at his San Diego home.

According to sheriff officials, Vindiola worked for a third-party delivery service that works for Amazon. She tried to give Finn to a sheriff’s investigator, to her friend, and then to her mother, but neither of them wanted a dog, so they turned Finn over to an animal shelter in El Centro.

The next day, the dog was reunited with Lappenhagen.

Vindiola pleaded guilty to grand theft of private property earlier this year.

City News Service contributed to this article.

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