Pa. police department mistakenly identifies Philly rapper Lil Uzi Vert as a dog thief

As it turns out, Philadelphia rapper Lil Uzi Vert isn’t actually suspected of stealing a dog from a Luzerne County pet store, despite an erroneous message shared to social media this week by the Wilkes-Barre Township Police Department.

The police department on Thursday shared a Facebook post seeking the public’s help in finding a suspect who stole a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel named Riku from Brookside Pups in Pine Mall. Along with photos of the stolen dog, the post included a picture of the suspect’s vehicle, as well as a shot of the suspect — sort of.

The photo included on the initial post was actually a picture of Uzi, real name Symere Bysil Woods, and while it remained up only briefly, it caused something of a stir. Police updated the post a short time later indicating that the suspect photo was incorrect, and that the post had been corrected to show the actual suspect.

“The original photo of the male provided by the establishment was not the correct male,” the department wrote in the updated post. “We apologize for the error and any confusion.”

Uzi, incidentally, announced last year that they identify as gender nonconforming.

In an Instagram post, Brookside Pups wrote that Uzi is unequivocally not a suspect in the theft of Riku. According to TMZ, the error likely came from the suspect’s social media profiles, on which he uses a picture of Uzi as his avatar.

“We wanted to make clear that the music artist Lil Uzi Vert was not involved in the theft of Riku the puppy,” the pet shop’s statement read. “While the confusion in the photos used in the post was unfortunate, our focus is on the return of Riku.”

Uzi’s representatives at Roc Nation issued a statement saying that “the Wilkes-Barre Township Police Department should be embarrassed and ashamed for disparaging” Uzi’s character. Roc Nation added that Uzi was “nowhere near Pennsylvania when this theft occurred.”

“This grave error could’ve had significant repercussions on Uzi’s career and epitomizes how Black men can be wrongfully charged and arrested by police departments across the country,” Roc Nation’s statement read. “Uzi loves all animals and this serious mistake has deterred the apprehension of the kidnapper. Our collective hope is that the puppy is safely and promptly rescued.”

Whoever stole Riku, meanwhile, was last seen traveling on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, and was believed to be heading toward Philadelphia. Brookside Pups asked anyone who spots the vehicle, a dark-colored Chevrolet Tahoe, to contact 911.