A police dog was called in to assist with an attempted dognapping investigation and helped recover a critical piece of evidence in the case.
The doggie drama began when a woman was confronted by an armed man Wednesday in the parking lot at Providence Marketplace, a shopping mall in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee.
According to a Facebook post by Nick Beres of WTVF-TV, Nashville’s CBS affiliate, the man demanded the woman’s French bulldog, Shortcake.
The woman refused to hand over her pup.
“The woman and the dog were briefly forced into his vehicle, but then managed to get away unharmed,” Beres reported.
The Mt. Juliet Police Department reported in a Facebook post that the suspect, identified as Ahmed Gouda, 21, of Lebanon, Tennessee, was already “known to the victim.”
Gouda fled the area before police arrived on the scene, according to the Mt. Juliet Police Department.
Murfreesboro Police lent a hand in the investigation and located the suspect in their town.
The Murfreesboro Police reported that they used license plate recognition technology to locate Gouda. (They reported Gouda’s age as 24.)
???? Murfreesboro police arrested a man late Wednesday afternoon wanted by the Mt. Juliet Police Department (MJPD) for aggravated assault and kidnapping. Ahmed Gouda, 24, was tracked to an apartment complex on Hillwood using LPR technology. A woman also wanted by MJPD was detained. pic.twitter.com/P7iX2XyDPp
— Murfreesboro TN Police Department (@MboroPoliceDept) August 6, 2025
That’s when K9 Citron was called in.
“Further investigation revealed that a handgun had been discarded along S. Mt. Juliet Rd near Crossings Cir.,” the post reported.
“Thanks to the excellent work of K9 Citron, the firearm was swiftly recovered.”
The Mt. Juliet Police did not specify the charges against Gouda, but they labeled the incident a “domestic-related, armed aggravated assault and kidnapping.”
“Gouda has also been wanted by Nashville authorities since January 2025 for Theft of a Firearm, Theft of Property ($10,000–$60,000), and Aggravated Burglary,” the report added.
“We are incredibly grateful for our officers’ rapid response and thorough investigation, and we deeply appreciate the outstanding support and efforts from Murfreesboro Police.”
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