Arnie the dog found dead in stolen ute after week of searching

A family dog lost when a Brisbane man’s ute was stolen has been found dead in the vehicle almost a week after the theft was reported to police.

The location of Arnie the German shepherd became the centre of a citywide search, with his owners Nathan and Louise McKeown appearing on multiple TV channels appealing for the dog’s return.

On social media, more than 16,000 people followed a Facebook page tracking possible sightings of the animal.

Arnie, a seven-year-old German shepherd, was sleeping in his family’s ute when it was stolen.Credit: Nathan Mckeown

Arnie went missing on November 8, when the McKeowns’ black ute was taken from a property in the bayside suburb of Wynnum with the dog asleep in the tray.

“Since receiving the report, police have worked around the clock following all lines of inquiry to locate Arnie and the stolen vehicle,” a Queensland police statement said.

The ute was found nine days later, on November 17, on Amelia Street in the inner-city suburb of Fortitude Valley, with the dog deceased inside.

Police are calling for further public assistance to find who stole the Toyota HiLux from a Davidson Street home in Wynnum between 1.30am and 5am on Saturday last week.

“We hadn’t given up hope of finding Arnie and being able to reunite him with his family,” Detective Senior Sergeant Christopher Lafferty said.

“Investigators are devastated by this discovery and our thoughts are with the family at this difficult time.

“Officers remain committed to finding justice for Arnie and his family and will continue to investigate any report to identify and locate the offender.”

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