Stolen Pony Returned To RivCo Family After Lengthy Search

JURUPA VALLEY, CA—After weeks of searching, the Vasquez family of Jurupa Valley has been reunited with their stolen pony, "Little Evil. "

Mayra and Ruben Vasquez Sr. have raised their children around horses, and Ruben Sr. is known locally as Rábano, a former bull rider and a cowboy who now trains horses for a living. They have two horses in their yard, where the children frequently play and ride.

In late February, the pony belonging to 6-year-old Ruben Vasquez Jr. was taken from behind a fence on their property, his mother told Patch in a previous report.

About an hour after Vasquez Sr. arrived home, he noticed the family's two ponies were where they should be, the family said. About an hour later, when he went out to feed them, the white pony—"Little Evil"— was gone.

They filed a report with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department and Jurupa Valley Sheriff's Station deputies who investigated the disappearance. Bolt cutters were found nearby, believed to have been used to pry apart a chain-link fence and release the tiny equine.

Still, the family said the investigation moved slowly.

They took to a Facebook group, asking for help, and ultimately learned of the pony's probable location in the same way.

Weeks after the theft, a social media tipster shared that a pony resembling "Little Evil" was at a dairy farm in Ontario. The family immediately followed the tip and found the pony "standing alone."

The name of the person who took the pony was not disclosed, but the boy and horse have been reunited, which is all the parents wanted.

"As soon as he saw it, he ran to the pony. He grabbed it, and they walked out together," his mother said. "Ruben can't stop smiling! His best friend is finally where he belongs."