Hobbes is back: Mystery caller guides family, refuses Rs 70K reward

Dressed in a new jacket for his homecoming party, he wagged his tail and followed his parents around the house. Though he looked tired, he was excited to re-unite with his family members after four days of separation. Hobbes, a nine-year-old Labrador, was snatched while out for a walk with his owner on Tuesday outside a gated society in Gurgaon. He was found on Saturday morning in a nearby village, thanks to an anonymous caller.
'The caller did did not want the reward money’
Shailen Chawla, Hobbes’ owner, tells us, "On Saturday morning, we got a call from an unknown number and the caller said he knew where Hobbes was.He told us to reach Begampur Khatola village, which is about 7-8 km away. He gave us very specific instructions to navigate through the lanes and reach the house where Hobbes was being kept. When we asked the people in the house about Hobbes, they said that someone had left him there three days ago."
Hobbes gets a treat from his pet parents Shailen and Supriya Chawla (BCCL)
Supriya, Shailen’s wife, adds, "He was sleeping on the terrace, and when my husband called out his name, he woke up, looked confused and started howling. It sounded like he was angry at us for leaving him! But after ten minutes, he was just jumping all over us."
The family in whose house Hobbes was found told the Chawlas about the guy who brought the dog. Shailen says, "The man who snatched Hobbes was in his 20s, but when we caught the guy the family told us about, he was in his 40s. So we were quite confused. He told us, ‘Main toh auto chalata hoon. Kisi ne mujhe yeh kutta diya aur bola ki woh thode din baad aake le jayega’. But he denied everything when we took him to the police station. He is in custody now."
Shailen adds, “We had announced a reward of Rs 20,000 for any tip on his whereabouts. Since I work with the security department of our society, Vatika City, they also announced a reward of Rs 50,000 from their side. But the caller said he did not want any money.”
Cutting the cake at his homecoming party (BCCL)
‘Will be more careful while walking Hobbes now’
While everyone celebrated Hobbes’ homecoming, they hoped that this would be the only bad experience he has in his lifetime. BR Mehta, Shailen’s father, who was walking the dog when he was snatched, says, "I knew that he would come back. This has been a learning experience for me, and I will be more careful while walking him now. I will not let anyone even hold the leash."