Reward Offered in Case of Accident Victim's Missing Dog in Hampton Bays

In an effort to spread the word, we thought we'd share that there is a $1,000 reward being offered for the safe return of the shih tzu that belonged to a Donna Sartori, a Middle Island woman who was killed one week ago in Hampton Bays after she was struck by an alleged drunken driver.

Bam Bam, a two-year-old black and white shih tzu, was believed to have been in the car at the time of the accident, but ran off. Sartori was standing near the car when she was struck at 4:24 a.m. The drunken driver, who is facing charges, also hit her car, and another parked car.

Leslie Kappel, an East Quogue resident, said she read about the story on Patch and reached out to Sartori's family to see if she could help put up posters in the area. 

Gail Murcott, a Hampton Bays resident, also commented on Patch, offering the reward. Kappel reached out to her to set it up and get the information on the posters. Murcott and her twin sister, Lynn, who also lives in Hampton Bays, put up the reward money together. 

"The woman and the dog have been on my mind constantly — if that was me, I'd want every everyone looking for my dog," Lynn said. "I realize what the family is going through right now, and we wanted to do something to help."

Kappel said on Thursday that she is working the Southampton Town Animal Shelter to see if they can hold the award because she feels it would be best for whoever finds Bam Bam to bring him to the shelter so his microchip can be scanned.

Making matters a bit more complicated, none of the photos run with the stories of Bam Bam are actually him. Kappel said Sartori's cousin, Doreen Obiedzenski, who has been spreading the word of the dog's disappearance, doesn't have any photos of him. The only photos of him may have been on Sartori's cellphone, which was destroyed in the accident, Kappel said.

Anyone with information about the dog can reach Obiedzenski at 631-721-6485 or Kappel at (516) 380-7077, or, they can notify the Southampton Animal Shelter or Southampton Town police, are continuing to work on the investigation into Sartori's death.

The poster, attached here, include information in Spanish.