LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The horrific death of an English Bulldog captivated the Las Vegas Valley this summer as detectives worked to track down her killers.
Reba the Bulldog was left to die in a taped up tote bin in a dumpster near the Boulevard Mall in July.
About five months later, her accused killers were arrested. Markeisha Foster and Isaac Laushaul are each facing a single “cruelty to animals” felony charge.
Now, the lead Detective on Reba’s case, Eduardo Pazoscazares, is offering insight on how they were able to track Foster and Isaac down, while navigating pressure from the community and animal advocacy groups.
The Sergeant over Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s Missing Persons and Animal Cruelty Sections, William Gethoefer, says destroyed evidence caused detectives to be “behind the 8 ball” to begin with.
“The tub that Reba was in, the tub was gone, some of the scene was destroyed,” Gethoefer explained.
With evidence detectives may have used for fingerprint comparison gone, Pazoscazares says video showing a white sedan driving up to the area where Reba was found was one key to cracking the case.
The video was released publicly in October, but Pazoscazares says they had the video within a week or two of the incident.
“Once it goes out to the public, we get several tips that come in that are unrelated to our case,” Pazoscazares said. He then explained why they waited to release the video until October. “Or, if the suspects do watch the news, they can get rid of the vehicle, which then we lose evidence.”
He says they used features on the white sedan to nail down the vehicle’s exact make and model, and then followed up with every matching vehicle in the area on the day Reba was dumped July- about 50 in total.
“We would look at the registered owner, go to family, relatives, and then go to where they live,” Pazoscazares said.
Throughout all of this, Pazoscazares says they were sifting through tips pouring in from the community.
He says the added pressure from animal advocacy groups and the community was tough.
“At the end of the day, we’re the ones investigating the crimes. We’re the ones that have to build this case,” the detective said. “They have to have faith and trust that we’ll be able to do our job.”
The nail in the coffin was video of Reba in Laushaul’s apartment, proving he had ownership of her prior to the day she was dumped. When officers returned to the apartment after the incident, she was gone.
Despite the challenges, Pazoscazares says arresting Reba’s accused killers has been the most meaningful moment of his career so far.
“Relief, but still more work to be done,” he shared. “We want to see the convictions go through. So hopefully when that time comes and I have to testify, I’m ready to go.”
Both suspects are headed for a jury trial in June.
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