Toddler Reunited With Stolen “Best Friend” After Simon Cowell Offers $14K Reward

A lost puppy. A heartbroken child. And a family who’d do anything to make things right. For some, this may feel like the plot to a Disney film at best. Or a tragic story in the news at worse.

But for 3-year-old Edward Latter, his family, and his lost puppy, it was a harsh reality. And it looked like there would be no happy ending. But that’s when Simon f–king Cowell stepped in.

Best Friends Forever

The bonds between humans and dogs are unbreakable. You don’t get the moniker “man’s best friend” for nothing. If you lost your best friend, what would you do?

For three-year-old Edward Latter and his family, who lost Morse (pictured here) in 2017, the choice was simple: Do whatever it takes to get him back.

Morse Went Missing

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Edward and Morse were inseparable. “They are such good pals,” his father Richard explained. And then, in December 2017, the unthinkable happened: Morse went missing. “Morse escaped from the garden – he is a bit of a tunneller – he tunnelled under the fence and escaped on the road,” said Richard.

Outrageous Nerve

Richard and his partner, Amanda Hopkins, received information from a witness to a couple in a pickup truck who snatched Morse and drove away.

The witness was going to pick up Morse herself, but as Richard explained, “Almost in the same moment the chap got out of the truck and picked him up saying ‘don’t worry, the dog belongs to a friend of ours. We will take it back to them’.

It was outrageous nerve.”

False Leads

In England, where the crime took place, mass surveillance cameras (known as CCTV) are common. Unfortunately, the dash cam on the witness’ car wasn’t working when the couple stole Morse.

Furthermore, while following up on a lead involving the same pickup at a burger place, the CCTV wasn’t usable, as the restaurant “only had a small memory stick.”