A California police sergeant is offering a $1,000 cash reward for a Cookie Monster toy that was stolen from a New Hampshire boy, WHDH reported Thursday.
Aidan Carter, a 12-year-old boy suffering from the rare genetic disorder Hunter syndrome, was participating in a clinical trial in San Francisco on Jan.1 when his stuffed animal was stolen, according to a report from WHDH. The Cookie Monster was inside a backpack that was stolen when someone broke into his family’s rental car. (RELATED: Pup Stolen During 2012 Home Invasion Reunites With Owner 8 Years Later)
The 12-year-old has gone through over 20 surgeries and has had to undergo a weekly infusion of Elaprase, which only helps mitigate some of the symptoms of the disorder, according to the Portsmouth Herald. Carter’s Cookie Monster, which he has had since he was two, has been a source of comfort during his treatments.
In a video posted to the Facebook of the non-profit Hunter’s Chest—a group composed of San Francisco police officers who provide toys, snacks, and necessities to children who are victimized by crime —Sgt. Rich Jones vowed that a $1,000 cash reward would be given to the person who returned Carter’s Cookie Monster.
“The rules are simple, no questions asked,” Jones says in the video. “Get us the Cookie Monster, you get the cash.”
Carter said that while he’s gotten some replacements from relatives, they’re just not the same, according to WHDH.
“They don’t have the same magic that the original had, they don’t have the same comfort that the original had,” he told the outlet.
Jones encouraged everyone in the surrounding area to be on the lookout for a black Puma backpack with a gold emblem that contained the Cookie Monster.