An East Greenwich police officer who told officers from a neighboring town that neglect and mistreatment left her no choice but to take a dog to an animal shelter in Middletown was charged this week with stealing an animal.

Kerrie L. Mazur, 43, an East Greenwich officer who lives in North Kingstown, took the 2-year-old Great Pyrenees mix to the Potter League on Sept. 16, according to police reports.

She told people at the shelter that she saw the dog on consecutive days outside the Christmas Tree Shop on East Main Road, in Middletown, without an owner or a collar. She said she took the dog home and bathed and fed it before bringing it to the shelter, according to the police.

But when questioned by North Kingstown police, Mazur said neglect and mistreatment forced her to bring the dog to the shelter, according to police reports.

The dog’s owners, who live on Nesta Drive in North Kingstown, reported their pet missing on Sept. 15. They said the dog, named Diesel, was usually in their yard, which is fenced in. They also said Mazur lives on an adjacent street.

North Kingstown police asked Mazur to come to the police station on Thursday. When she arrived, she was given a summons to appear in District Court, Wakefield, on Sept. 7. The charge, stealing of an animal, is a misdemeanor.

East Greenwich Police Chief David Desjarlais declined comment on the case.

Diesel was “very excited” when his owners picked him up at the Middletown shelter on Sept. 29, according to a North Kingstown police report.

Staff Writer Lisa Vernon-Sparks contributed to this report.

redgar@projo.com