Dog the Bounty Hunter cites Bible, tells thief who stole from wife's store to come forward
Duane "Dog" Chapman held a press conference on Friday, telling the thief who burglarized his deceased wife’s store that he is willing to forgive them if they come forward. But he also argued that the Bible says stealing from the dead is an unforgivable sin.
Chapman lost his beloved wife, Beth Chapman, last month after a battle with cancer and now her store in Colorado was broken into.
On Friday, the “Dog's Most Wanted” star spoke out as the Edgewater Police Department in Colorado held a press conference outside of the business where the crime took place.
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“Well, it’s important for me to be here because it was our building, it was actually my wife’s,” he said in footage captured by Fox 31 Denver. “My message to the guy is, if you turn yourself in within the next 48 hours, I will not press charges. I will try to get you probation, a job … ’cause me and you got a special connection now.”
Chapman continued “but if you don’t, there will be no mercy. I am not OJ Simpson, so I’m not going to do this myself. … I’ve been across the nation, captured fugitives, and Colorado, especially this county, is one of the greatest, and some of the best cops in the country. They work overtime without getting paid, and they do a lot of stuff without getting paid.”
The reality star said that he trusted the Colorado police department because God told him he should. He also revealed that they already had some “really good leads,” and noted that the culprit has “48 hours to ask for forgiveness,” adding that he would forgive if that happened.
“One thing I'm confident in is I believe a lot in the Bible and the Bible says, ‘When you steal from the dead that's an unforgettable sin,” he said. “So not only I and the police officers here are looking but so is God.”
According to Chapman, the robbery, “hits home pretty bad” because a lot of Beth’s items are “missing.”
The thief took advantage of the building as Chapman revealed that he was moving the store's location and just recently canceled the insurance.
“I’ve trusted these cops for 35 years, and I keep hearing God tell me, ‘Put your faith in the cops and don’t do nothing yourself.’ So thank you all very much, love you all very much,” he concluded.
Edgewater Police Department Corporal Bob Brink, a public information officer, told PEOPLE one of Chapman’s team members discovered the crime scene last Tuesday around 1 a.m. local time.
