A store burglar was halted in his tracks by a brave homeless woman and her gigantic fluffy dog sleeping outside.
The woman, identified only as Lottie, confronted the thief as he left the Lush cosmetics outlet in Oxford, England, early Wednesday, the BBC reported.
She forced him to hand over a laptop and $1,400 worth of goods he'd stolen. He then fled, and Lottie returned the items to the business on Thursday.
"We were greatly moved by her selfless actions in protecting us, and want to thank her from the bottom of our hearts," the store's trainee manager Rachel Ross told The Oxford Times.
Store manager James Atherton told ITV News they were "amazed and just so joyful."
"It was fantastic," Atherton said. "We weren't expecting to get them back at all."
Lottie has not yet commented on the incident. But, according to Atherton, she became suspicious when the man first approached the store at 3 a.m.
She asked the man what he was doing, and he said he was waiting for a manager named Ben.
But Lottie knows the staff, and knew that wasn't the boss's name. She decided to keep a watchful eye, and her dog Marley growled as the man exited the store. It's not clear how the thief entered the business, but she confronted him as he tried to leave.
Staff gave Lottie a hamper of food and Lush products to say thank you. They also set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for her and for charities dedicated to helping homeless people in the city. As of Sunday evening, more than $6,000 had been donated.
"We are really hoping to support Lottie to repay her for her amazing kindness," Atherton told the Press Association. He said that Lottie's dream was to buy a caravan.
The store is also using the incident to highlight reported cuts in budgets to serve homeless people in Oxford. "There is a dwindling support for vulnerable people and we must fight it. There are people who are getting sick and dying on our streets, as we walk by," it wrote on its Facebook page.
"It is our responsibility to speak out, volunteer, become active in challenging these governmental cuts, and the stigma against homeless people," it added.
Also on HuffPost: