Magnolia, a three-month-old kitten from Beltsville, Maryland, was waiting for her forever home. When a man finally approached her enclosure, she probably thought this was her forever bond.It wasn’t. Within seconds, he’d grabbed her and bolted, and what came next was something that the feline could never have imagined. Magnolia became the unwitting accomplice in an attempted bank robbery.She’s back at Pet Supplies Plus now, safe and none the worse for it. But she’s not up for grabs to just anyone this time. Magnolia is looking for a responsible, law-abiding owner, one whose idea of a bond doesn’t involve a getaway!
A quick stop at the pet store
Security footage from Pet Supplies Plus, a pet store at the Chestnut Hill Shopping Center in Beltsville, Maryland, shows a man dressed in a light-coloured T-shirt and black beanie walking in around 10:30 a.m. on Monday. He walks back out seconds later, but with a kitten held against his chest. The rescue that placed her there describes Magnolia, a black-and-white tuxedo cat, as ‘sweet, playful, and always purring’. The man had been eyeing little Magnolia for weeks, according to the animal rescue organisation Beltsville Community Cats.“He obviously noticed where the key was kept, and when the store staff had their backs turned, he grabbed the key, grabbed the kitten, ran out of the store, and went across to the bank,” Stephanie Stullich with Beltsville Community Cats told WJZ.
Straight to the bank
The man ran across the shopping centre to a nearby PNC Bank branch, with the kitten still in his arms, according to witnesses. He allegedly tried to use Magnolia as an accessory in his attempted bank robbery.“He handed Magnolia to a bank employee and said, ‘Can you hold this?’ He proceeded to write a note and handed it to the bank teller, saying, ‘Give me all your cash.’ So, the kitten was a decoy. That’s why he took her,” Stullich added. She got a call from a rattled store employee and drove over immediately. The patrol cars parked outside the bank told her this wasn’t a routine cat recovery!
Cat-napper caught in action
Representative image
“Saw all of these police cars, and I thought, ‘Wow, that’s a heck of a response for a stolen cat,’ but then I realised they were all going down to the bank,” Stullich said. Though the catnapper tried his best to rob the bank, it didn’t get him anywhere. It took only minutes for officers to close in. Prince George’s County Police confirmed that they took the man into custody at the bank. Investigators said the case remains open.
Feline found safe in manager’s office
The officers came out of the bank a few minutes later. No money was taken, and no one was hurt, including the kitten. Officers found her safe inside the bank manager’s office. The three-month-old was seemingly unbothered. “It could’ve ended tragically. She could’ve scrambled out of his arms in the parking lot and gotten hit by a car, and that would’ve been the end. We’re so grateful. Probably the hardest part for her was being carried across the scary parking lot,” Stullich said.
Magnolia is looking for a home, but there’s a catch
Sweet Magnolia is now awaiting adoption with Beltsville Community Cats. But she is looking for “a law-abiding citizen with a lot of love in their heart,” Stullich said.Magnolia is guilty of something, though, just not the crime she got dragged into. “The only thing she’s guilty of is stealing hearts,” her caretaker said. Maybe the occasional treat too. Neither one is exactly the kind of offence that lands a cat in kitty jail.In fact, the rescue should be grateful. Magnolia’s brief brush with crime got her more attention than months of adoption posts ever could! The foster care has dozens of cats and kittens looking for a forever home.“Magnolia is a poster child for the need to adopt rescue kittens and cats. We have so many people call us every day. Beltsville Community Cats is no different from any other rescue group all over the state and across the country. All of these rescue groups are working so hard to try to help these cats, but we need people to adopt them,” Stullich said.If you are a law-abiding citizen and a caring person, Magnolia, or any one of her BFFs, could be yours. You can contact Beltsville Community Cats about their available felines via email at hello@beltsvillecats.net.
