Police officers have stood guard in front of the Pensacola Humane Society this week after a man and woman from Pace allegedly assaulted an employee during an attempted dognapping that was narrowly thwarted by staff.

Michelle Waldrop, 48, and Kyle Colshan, 38, were both arrested Wednesday and charged with larceny and burglary with assault and battery in connection to the incident. They were both booked into the Escambia County Jail with $101,000 bonds and remained in custody Thursday.

The two are accused of entering the Pensacola Humane Society at about 1:30 p.m. Oct. 16 with a plan to steal a black and white Chihuahua-mix that had been legally seized while its owners were in jail.

Waldrop distracted an employee working at the front counter as Colshan ran past the counter and into a back area with kennels, according to arresting documents. The employee yelled after Colshan, saying he was not allowed there and then chased after him.

Colshan managed to pick up the dog and run toward the front door, which Waldrop was holding open as she yelled "Hurry up, let’s go," the report states.

The employee ran toward Waldrop and struggled with her to shut the door. Waldrop let go of the door and grabbed the woman, pulling her hair and pushing her head into the door, causing the employee to collapse, according to the report.

Two other employees had seen Colshan running with the dog and grabbed him. As he tried to free himself, Colshan dropped the dog, and both he and Waldrop fled into the parking lot and drove away in a red and black striped Mini Cooper, the report stated.

The arrest reports state the dog had been found by Santa Rosa County Animal Control, which transferred ownership of the dog over to the Pensacola Humane Society.

"The Santa Rosa County Animal Control attempted to get in contact with the owners but were unable to do so because they were in jail,” the report stated. “The dog was legally seized, and the ownership was transferred to Santa Rosa Animal Control.”

Pensacola Humane Society Executive Director Jennifer Bitner told the News Journal that at the time of the incident, there had been no way for her staff to verify that the dog had once been owned by Colshan or Waldrop.

She said she requested police presence at the Humane Society as a preventative measure after her employees feared future attacks when social media posts surfaced that threatened to again try to seize the dog. Authorities have since removed the online posts.

"Pensacola Humane Society takes the safety of our volunteers, staff, and the animals under our care very seriously," Bitner said in a written statement. "The events of last Wednesday were traumatic for everyone working on our premises at the time of the incident. As this is a criminal matter we are refraining from discussing the details at this time."

Colin Warren-Hicks can be reached at colinwarrenhicks@pnj.com or 850-435-8680.