DNA from dog's mouth solves robbery

BARBERTON, Ohio - DNA evidence found inside of a dog's mouth apparently helped Barberton police solve a home invasion that happened last October.

However, the suspect, 24-year-old David Stoddard, was not charged or arrested before he allegedly shot and killed a pregnant, 16-year-old Akron girl three months later.

According to Lt. Brian Jamison of the Barberton Police Department, Stoddard was indicted Thursday for aggravated robbery and aggravated burglary in connection with an incident that happened on Oct. 6 at a Jefferson Avenue home.

In that case, police said three masked men burst into the house, fired shots and robbed a woman and her son.

Police said the family dog, a pitbull mix, bit one of the suspects on his left arm. The dog was shot and killed by one of the intruders, officers said.

Officer Chris Mitchell helped process the scene and applied cotton swabs to four corners of the dog's mouth, hoping to find DNA skin cell evidence from the suspect who was bitten.

"Before I did it, I actually got on my laptop in my cruiser and looked it up because I never heard of it being done before and I didn't know if there was any precedent for it," Mitchell said.

On Dec. 5, Barberton police received a letter from the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification in Richfield that indicated a potential DNA match to Stoddard.

The officers were stunned that DNA from the dog's mouth potentially cracked a case that otherwise could have gone unsolved.

"We were surprised that it worked, really. We had no other evidence in the case basically. It was at a dead end," Jamison said.

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DNA from dog's mouth solves robbery