Scammer targets Alabama owners of missing dog

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — A Huntsville couple fears their missing dog has become part of a scam.

Andrew and Alicia Rickabaugh say their dog Hela, a black lab, has been missing for more than a week.

Hela and their other dog, Atlas, escaped the fence at their home in Huntsville. After searching for two days, they did find Atlas, but Hela was nowhere to be found.

The couple made flyers and social media posts with their phone numbers listed, asking for help. Then the phone rang at 3 a.m. on Thursday.

“The gentleman identified himself as someone from the Greater Huntsville Humane Society,” Alicia said.

The Rickabaughs were suspicious and decided to record the phone call. This person told the Rickabaughs that Hela was hit by a car and needed surgery.

And they needed to pay more than $4,000.

“And he was trying to, like, make it a hasty thing, like, I need I need an answer now because otherwise the paralysis might be permanent,” Alicia said.

News 19 contacted the Greater Huntsville Humane Society. CEO Spencer Batcheller says this is something the organization would never do.

“I want to reiterate to our community that that is not something the humane society would ever do. We actually do not take stray animals. That is the city’s code for the Huntsville Animal Services to take. And we would never request funds from anyone to receive an animal that they have lost,” Batcheller said.

While he’s not exactly sure how these scammers are finding people, he says he believes it’s through social media posts and flyers made by pet owners.

“A lot of the time, numbers are attached to those posts. ‘If you see my dog or cat, please call me,’ and I believe this is the ammunition that they are using to execute these calls,” Batcheller said.

While Hela is still missing, the support from the community has been special.

“There’s a neighborhood not far from here. They’re kids. I don’t know them, you know, but the lady messaged me and she had a picture. It was like a gigantic poster that these kids had made, trying to find our dogs, complete strangers,” Andrew said.

If you receive one of these scam calls, you can email info@ghhs.org or call GHHS at 256-881-8081.