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Rare bird worth more than $2,000 home safe after being stolen from Pinellas pet store

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Published  September 9, 2024 6:14pm EDT
Pinellas County
FOX 13 News

Woman charged with stealing exotic bird from pet store

FOX 13's Kailey Tracy reports.

OLDSMAR, Fla. - A rare bird worth $2,400 is back home and healthy after deputies said a woman stole him from a local pet store Saturday morning.

Grissel Flores Nistal, 54, is charged with grand theft. According to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, Nistal took the baby Black Headed Caique from its container where customers can pet the animals at Everything Birds in Oldsmar. Surveillance video, deputies said, then shows her put the bird quickly in her purse and leave. 

"A lady came in, and she looked around and then put her sunglasses on, waited until the coast was clear, and then reached down and grabbed this little baby, who is still on hand feeding formula," said Kirsten Cunningham, the owner of Everything Birds.

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Cunningham said she was just feet away getting ready for an event at the store when it happened.

"I had greeted her and said, ‘hello, welcome to Everything Birds. If you have any questions, let us know.’ And I never would have thought that someone would have stolen from us literally right behind my back," Cunningham said.

She said store employees were setting up for the event, and taking all the birds out and making sure they had food and water.

"She was really quick," Cunningham said.

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Cunningham said they realized right away that the extremely rare bird was gone and called the police.

"I was afraid that this lady may have stolen the bird with the intention of selling it to someone who has no idea how to take care of birds," she said. "These are delicate creatures. When we sell a bird, we send a person home with a lot of instructions and give them a consultation. So, we have no idea what could happen in a stranger's hands."

"This baby is also pretty young," Cunningham said. "It's only a few months old. It's still hand feeding on formula. If someone is not told that, we were afraid that it could pass away if it wasn’t given the right care."

Cunningham credits the surveillance video shared on social media and the local news that led two people to identify Nistal. Deputies went to her home in Largo where she agreed to return the bird and deputies arrested her. 

"We have learned from this that we have to be on our toes, that anybody could be out there to get us. We have definitely learned the importance of security cameras, and I encourage any, any business or small businesses especially, to install security cameras and to be really vigilant," Cunningham said.

READ: Families gathered in Tallahassee to commemorate Florida Missing Children's Day: 'Never, ever give up hope'

Deputies reunited the bird named Bandit, who’s doing well, with the store staff and the other animals on Sunday.

"This was just such a relief," Cunningham said.

Nistal’s bond was set at $6,000 on Monday. The judge also ordered her to stay away from Everything Birds and not to have any contact with Bandit. 

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