Missing cat last seen on video

FINDLAY --- A woman suspected of stealing a cat told police she had nothing to do with the incident. But, video surveillance from a freightliner parked at the Best Buy Distribution Center suggests otherwise. According to an incident report from the Findlay Police Department, an officer was dispatched to the Hancock County Humane Society on Oct. 10, 2023, to speak to the dog warden about a cat allegedly stolen from a semi. The responding officer was already familiar with the case after posts circulated online. On Oct. 2, Christine Powell-Smith, a truck driver from Nashville, Tennessee, was taking a load to the distribution center on County Road 212. While traveling, she had her 1-year-old calico cat named Pippa in the cab of the truck. The report states Smith had a conversation with a woman in a truck parked two spaces over about the two calico cats in her truck. After the delivery, the report states, Smith left and discovered Pippa was missing. Dash cam and cab camera footage shows her truck was entered by the woman and Pippa had allegedly been stolen. The officer who reviewed footage provided by Smith wrote in the report: "I then see a male and a female walk past the front of Christine's semi several times, each pointing towards the dash of Christine's cab. At one point, the male stops in between (their) truck and Christine's truck. In one of the side mirrors of Christine's truck, I can see the body of the female up close against Christine's truck. I see the female bent over and pick up an object with a white top. This object appears to be a cat with a white stomach. The object is placed under the female's coat and they walk back towards their truck. "The male is standing with a flashlight pointing to the ground and the female is standing just behind the cab door. The female then pulls her hood over her head, opens the door and the cat falls out. The female puts the cat in her hoodie and walks towards their truck." The man and woman in the report were identified after Smith contacted the Best Buy Distribution Center and the trucking company they worked for. But, when the woman was contacted, she denied having the cat or any part of the incident. According to the report, the officer told her it was hard for him to believe her statement about not taking the cat while he was watching her take the cat. The Courier received copies of the surveillance videos submitted to police via a public records request. A video of what the officer describes is available on The Courier YouTube page. While the woman was charged with petty theft and vehicle trespassing, both misdemeanors, the officer also requested the man to be charged with complicity. As of now, the man has not yet been charged. The woman has pleaded not guilty to both of the misdemeanors and the case is currently in the pre-trial stage while the prosecutor and the woman's attorney work out details of the case.