Prize-winning rabbit stolen at Puyallup Fair

Security has been tightened at Puyallup Fair agricultural tents after someone apparently swiped a prize-winning rabbit after it was awarded the blue ribbon.

Since Sunday afternoon, when Stefan Johnson's mother noticed that her son's rabbit "RJ" was missing, Puyallup fair workers have hunted for the 1 ½-year-old orange Netherland Dwarf rabbit.

"It's just such an unusual situation it happened in the first place," said fair spokeswoman Karen LaFlamme, adding that this is the first theft of a show animal at the fair in more than 20 years.

A witness told police that he saw a man leave the rabbit barn with an orange rabbit.

Lorri Ericson, spokeswoman for Puyallup police, said the theft is tough to investigate because "there's no solid information to follow up on."

"All we have is a juvenile who said he saw a man with the bunny and nobody was able to identify this juvenile," Ericson said.

Stefan Johnson, a 13-year-old 4-H member from Cowlitz County, brought RJ to the barn Friday to be judged with other orange Netherland Dwarf rabbits. RJ competed against nearly 10 other rabbits to win the top prize, LaFlamme said.

RJ and the other orange Netherland Dwarf rabbits were scheduled to remain on public display inside the rabbit barn through the weekend, LaFlamme said. They were to leave the fair around 6 p.m. Sunday.

Cindy Johnson looked in on RJ around 3:30 p.m. Sunday and when she returned minutes later the cage door was ajar and the rabbit was missing, LaFlamme said. The plastic tie that kept the door closed had been sliced off.

She walked to the back of the barn, where Stefan was playing video games, to see if he had the rabbit, LaFlamme said. They later notified police.

Johnson said she was distracted by a young visitor who was trying to pet the rabbits through the bars of the cages.

"I know I could have stopped it," she said.

She said that when she told Stefan that RJ was gone, "he jumped up and nearly ran to the cage to see it himself. He cried."

While police are investigating the missing rabbit as a theft case, LaFlamme admits that it's possible that RJ gnawed the tie off, then hopped his way to freedom.

"They can nudge those cages open very easily. Rabbits can move fast," LaFlamme said.

Though all of the rabbits being shown and judged at this year's fair have gone, LaFlamme said security remains tight inside the 4-H barns, where horses and dogs await judging.

"They have heightened security for sure with the kids in the barns," LaFlamme said.

RJ can be identified by a tattoo of his name inside his ear. Anyone with information about RJ is asked to call Puyallup Police at 253-841-5522.

Information from the Associated Press is contained in this report.

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com