PROVIDENCE –– Someone broke into Jade Castro’s apartment in Cranston early Sunday, stealing her things –– and her little dog, too.

Two days later, Castro got a mysterious phone call, from a woman who called herself “Christine.”

The woman claimed that she’d bought the Havanese from strangers in New Bedford, who sold it for $700.

I heard the dog meant a lot to you, Christine said to Castro. If you want it back, pay up: $700 for the fluffy lapdog. Meet me at 5 p.m. with the money.

This was a job for the pet detectives.

Castro told Cranston detectives Paula Duffy and Jamie Jennings, who were investigating the break-in, and they turned to Providence detective William Corrigan for help. (Corrigan later laid out the investigation in his report.)

The dog-money exchange came down Tuesday afternoon at a Mobil station on Charles Street. Two women from New Bedford sat on a wall with the dog in their grip. Castro approached with cash in a manila envelope.

As one of the women handed over the dog, the detectives pounced.

Teresa Searles, 25, was charged with receiving stolen goods and conspiracy, and Ashley Vieira, 23, was charged with conspiracy.

And Castro brought her little dog home.