Kate Riviello Issues Criminal Complaint and Pre-Replevin for Dog Transferred After Guardian’s Murder in Memphis

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 Date:  6/24/17

What:  Police Complaint Filed in Albuquerque, NM, for Absconding with Lily the dog.  Spanning across Four States to include New Mexico, Tennessee, Mississippi and Indiana.

Where:  Castillo Family Living in Albuquerque, NM. 

Who:  David and Deborah Castillo, Kate Riviello, paralegal dog law expert (845) 856-7366 (http://www.kateriviello.wordpress.com, Who is Kate Riviello?)

 A young man named Dominic Castillo was living his dream traveling from state to state with his loyal petite tripod dog Lily when tragedy struck.  The circumstances surrounding the murder of Dominic in Memphis are still unclear, however, his precious Lily would go through an adventure that kept her safe but half way across the country from the only family and friends she had ever known.  Her parents, David and Deborah, devastated and running on adrenaline to solve their son’s murder, traveled from Albuquerque to Memphis.  They would learn that Lily had been transferred to a woman named Amela Gruenbart in Indianapolis.  The good Samaritans that found Lily never called the police or animal control in Memphis and “adopted” the dog to her.  When Gruenbart refused to return Lily to her rightful family, the Castillos hired dog law expert paralegal Kate Riviello who prepared a criminal complaint of possession of stolen property which was filed with their local police department in Albuquerque, as well as Memphis and Indianapolis. 

 Riviello contends that there is no “finder’s keepers” state and in every state an animal must be reported when found to authorities.  The laws that surround the responsibility of stolen property include that a consumer must beware of what one acquires such that if an item is extremely expensive with tags and one acquires that item for a very low price outside of a retail shop, the law holds that person responsible for prima facie evidence (on the face of it) that the item was stolen.  Lily is a tripod, meaning she has three limbs, with one limb having been removed through an extremely expensive surgery.  In addition, she had an expensive harness and collar, dragging a leash.  She was in good condition which lends itself to the fact that she was not away from her guardian for a long time. 

Riviello stated, “It is mind boggling that the good Samaritans of Memphis did not call the police or Memphis Animal Control, or even put up fliers and go door to door in the French Fort area where Lily was at large.  The rescue facility and veterinarian did not even call authorities.”  She continued that “if Lily had entered into Memphis Animal Control or police were notified, there was a high likelihood that the dog Lily would have been linked to the murder of her guardian, Dominic Castillo.”

 Deborah Castillo stated, “We just want our precious dog Lily back.  We have no understanding as to how someone could keep her from us.”  

 The Castillos are hoping that the police and District Attorney in Marion County, Indiana, will agree that Lily has been wrongfully transferred.  “We are hoping that the Sheriff will execute a warrant and place Lily in a neutral location for us to fly out to reunite her with our family.”  The murder investigation of their son is ongoing and the public is directed to contact Crime Stoppers with any information (901) 636-3300.