The dog, stolen after the owner’s death, is reunited with his Southern California family after a desperate four-month search.
Rhonda Beltran has been dealing with an ongoing nightmare after his brother Steve passed away in April. Lovers say the woman accidentally portrayed herself as Steve’s wife and said she was given access to her belongings by hospital staff.
She stole Steve’s personal belongings, a truck, thousands of dollars worth of property, and his beloved dog, Dinky.
“Dinky was his life,” Bertran told KTLA’s Sandra Mitchell. “He didn’t go anywhere without a dinkee.”
Rhonda Beltran was reunited with his late brother, Dinky, on August 6, 2025, after being stolen by a con man and disappeared for four months. (KTLA) Rhonda Beltran’s late brother Steve and his dog, Dinky. (Bertrand family) Ronda Bertrand’s late brother Steve and his dog, Dinky. (Bertrand family) Ronda Bertrand reunited with her brother’s dog, Dinky, who passed away on August 6, 2025, and was stolen by a con man and disappeared for four months. (KTLA) Rhonda Beltran was reunited with his late brother, Dinky, on August 6, 2025, after he was stolen by a con man and disappeared for four months. (KTLA) Rhonda Beltran was reunited with his late brother, Dinky, on August 6, 2025, after he was stolen by a con man and disappeared for four months. (KTLA)
The family began to seek public help in Dinky’s quest and spread pictures of dogs and their stories all over social media. The family said they had no help from the authorities and things looked desolate, with no lead on where Dinky is.
Despite efforts involving major media and social media campaigns, social media campaigns to find Dinky and alert the public didn’t receive support from local governments.
Then it all changed when Beltran received a call on August 4th from Keri-Lyn Jakubs, owner of Washington’s animal rescue group I Paw’d It Forward.
Yakup said the suspect in Steve’s case was arrested in a grand larceny car and had a dog with her at the time. The dog was taken to Jaccubus. After investigating online, Jaccubus encountered Bertran’s official plea for Dinky’s safe return.
After providing evidence that Dinky actually belongs to Bertran’s family, a plan was made to send him back home.
Dennis Meefin had already jumped into LAX, so when she saw the social media post, Dinky needed to help her get back to his family’s home, she volunteered to take him with her on a top-notch flight.
“When I saw this dog disappear for four months and his family needed him, it just broke my heart,” Jakubs said. “I would have been driving here.”
On August 6th, all parties met in a parking lot near LAX, swapping hugs and 6-pound dogs.
“It’s like some of my siblings are back,” Bertrand said in tears. “This is everything we prayed for, with everything else taken from him after he died.”
“Our goal is to make sure our families are together,” Jakubs said. “Dinker had to be at home.”
Now that Dinky has reunited with her family, Bertrand feels she has fulfilled her promise to her late brother in order to protect what she can be.
“I couldn’t fulfill that for a long time,” she said. “Now I have a Dinky and he’s where he belongs.”
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