Crime & Safety

Who Stole the Parrot? Kirkland Pet Shop Posts Video of Apparent Suspects

Denny's Pet World posts surveillance video on its Facebook page after a $600 green cheek conure parrot was stolen from the shop late last week. Kirkland Police confirm they are investigating.

 

, the longtime shop in Kirkland’s Totem Lake area, has posted on Facebook surveillance video of a couple they say stole a $600 parrot last week, an unusually colored green cheek conure.

Kirkland Police spokesman Lt. Mike Murray confirmed that the department is investigating the theft, which occurred at about 8 p.m. on Aug. 14, an hour before the store closed.

The video posted on the Denny’s Pet World Facebook page does not show the actual theft, but longtime shop manager Kelley Parsons said she is certain the couple in the footage is the pair who stole the bird. And she says other pet stores in the region have had birds stolen, and their staff have described a couple in their stores matching the description of the two in the video.

The video shows a man wearing a red sports jersey and red shorts and a woman in a blue or dark sleeveless dress, apparently with a young boy. As the boy looks at animals in pens, the man and woman look at birds in cages nearby.

“They look around, and while we don’t see them (on the video) actually taking it, we're sure it’s them,” she said. “I suspect this is not the first time these people have stolen birds.”

Parsons said the bird was stolen by someone who entered a staff-only door that had been left slightly ajar. Video inside that part of the store did not capture clear footage of the theft.

She said the type of parrot stolen is not rare, but that its turquoise coloration is unusual. The green cheek conure is a parakeet, a small parrot native to the forests of South America.

“It’s sad. We hand-feed these birds and raise them, and we’re careful to make sure they go to the right homes,” Parsons said. “It’s pretty upsetting. That poor little bird, who knows where it will end up?”

Parsons said she called several pet stores in the area to alert them of the theft, in case the thieves attempted to sell it to them. She said staff at one store reported having had a bird stolen recently and staff at another told her they had seen a couple with a small boy matching the description of the people in the video, who had also been in that store just before closing time.

KPD's Lt. Murray said detectives have a copy of the video on file and will be reviewing it. Anyone with any potential information about the theft is asked to call the Kirkland Police Department. It’s non-emergency number is 425-577-5656.

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