When a beloved pet passes, it can be difficult to make the decision to get a new companion. But when Officer Andre Thomas came face to face with a dog in a stolen car, he knew he had found his next pet.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by City of San Diego (@thecityofsandiego) on Nov 15, 2019 at 3:42pm PST

Last month Thomas, who has been with the San Diego Police Department for four years, was called to investigate a stolen car. While he didn’t find the thief, he did find a dog without an owner in the stolen vehicle.

And no, the dog was not the criminal mastermind.

At the time, Thomas was still mourning the death of his beloved yellow Labrador, Melakai, who had passed after more than ten years with Thomas. The two moved together from Fresno to San Diego when Thomas was 18 years old, and they were so close Thomas said he would never get another dog.

But when Thomas peered into the stolen car and saw a yellow Labrador puppy staring back at him, he had a feeling he would be changing his policy. First, though, he took the dog to the San Diego Humane Society in hopes that the dog’s owners would come claim him.

After three weeks, it was apparent that was not happening.

So Thomas went back to the shelter for his new buddy. “He adopted the pup, took him home and gave him a name worthy of the adversities the dog had overcome: Victor,” the City of San Diego shared on their Instagram.

“The two have been best friends ever since.”