Police have recaptured the man accused of shooting Lady Gaga’s dog walker after accidentally releasing him from a Los Angeles County Jail in April in what was described as a “clerical error.” 19-year-old James Howard Jackson was arrested on Wednesday, the county Sheriff’s Department revealed in a statement nearly one month after a $5,000 reward was pledged to anyone who had information about the suspected shooter’s whereabouts.
Per the statement, a wide multi-agency chase searched for James throughout Los Angeles, with law enforcement officers noting that the fugitive was “armed and dangerous,” though it’s still unclear how cops ended up finding him. Prosecutors believe that James and two gang member associates had been driving through LA on the lookout for expensive French bulldogs to steal before spotting Ryan with Gaga’s pups Asia, Koji, and Gustav near Sunset Boulevard, unaware of whose dogs they were about to kidnap.
James Howard Jackson, 19, has finally been captured after being on the run for five months. He had been mistakenly freed from jail due to a “clerical error”, after having been arrested for allegedly shooting Lady Gaga’s dog walker and stealing her French bulldogs. pic.twitter.com/6e1xE7DFJt
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) August 4, 2022
A violent struggle broke out between the gang members and Ryan, who was hit and choked while desperately trying to protect Gaga’s dogs. Things quickly escalated as James is said to have pulled out a gun and shot the dog walker in the chest, causing the latter to be rushed to the hospital after suffering from a collapsed lung.
A month after the incident, Ryan took to social media to share that he had lost part of his lung after undergoing surgery, but he assured Gaga’s fans that his recovery was going well and that he was already feeling much better.
The “Rain On Me” singer, who was in Rome at the time of the incident, stressed she would offer a $500,000 reward to anyone who could return her two stolen dogs Koji and Gustav, with “no questions asked,” with a woman coming forward two days later, claiming her pups had been left isolated and tied to a pole.
Lady Gaga was in Rome at the time of the attack but put out an emotional plea for the return of her three dogs – offering a £500,000 reward for their safe return, “no questions asked”. pic.twitter.com/tPcyAt5qrC
— Irish Daily Mirror (@IrishMirror) August 4, 2022
James pleaded not guilty when the county district attorney’s office charged him with attempted murder, conspiracy to commit a robbery, and assault with a semiautomatic firearm. Jaylin White, 19, and Lafayette White, 27, were also slapped with the same charges.
Harold White and Jennifer McBride received charges after cops uncovered they, too, were linked to the kidnapping, with Jennifer being the woman who acted as the person who had found the missing dogs.