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Biggest dogfighting bust in history
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AP Photo/The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Emily Rasinski
In what authorities described as the biggest dogfighting bust in history, more than 30 people were recently arrested in five states. Between 350 to 450 dogs, mostly pit bulls, were seized.
Federal charges were filed by prosecutors in Illinois, Kansas City, Eastern Texas, Nebraska, Iowa and St. Louis.
Acting on a tip from the Humane Society of Missouri, the Missouri Highway Patrol initiated a probe in the spring of 2008. The subsequent undercover investigation involved the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI") and the US Department of Agriculture when the state troopers uncovered links to other dogfighting operations in Nebraska, Iowa, Texas, Oklahoma, Illinois and Arkansas.
Defendants in the St. Louis case operated unlicensed kennels under the names "Cannibal Kennels," "Shake Rattle and Roll Kennel" and "Hard Goodbye Kennel." Robert Hackman, who operated the Shake Rattle and Roll Kennel allegedly sold a pit bull for $1,500 and delivered it with steroids to prepare the dog for fighting. Illegal gambling is alleged to have taken place during the fights, with thousands of dollars changing hands.
Dog fighting is banned in each of the states, and is a felony in 48 of them.
The indictment reveals that under-performing dogs were either electrocuted or shot to death. The bodies were then either burned or thrown in a river. Furthermore, dogs wounded during the fights were denied veterinary care.
Dispelling the myth that dogfighting involves uneducated, poor and/or rural citizens, one of the defendants, 48-year old Cris Bottcher worked as a nurse at a Bethany (MO) hospital. Another, 55-yr old Rick Hihath, was a physical education teacher. In a 1998 letter, Mr. Hihath wrote to a local newspaper, he claimed to have known about 50 "men," some of whom he identified as "close friends," who hosted cockfights. Mr. Hihath called them "good, old-fashioned American people." Also dispelling the perception that only men are involved in dogfighting, at least one of the defendants, Jill Makstaller, is a woman.
Each of the defendants faces up to five years in jail and a $250,000 fine for each charge, a class D felony. Each defendant was charged under 18 U.S.C. 371 (conspiracy), 7 U.S.C. 2156(a) and 18 U.S.C. 2 and 49 (sponsoring or exhibiting an animal in an animal fighting venture).
The seized dogs, all bearing scars or wounds typical of dog fighting, are being cared for by the Humane Society and American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals at undisclosed locations.
Dog fighting involves two dogs, which have been bred, reared and trained to fight. The animals are placed in a circular pit to fight to the death. The fight, which may last up to 4 hours, continues until one of the dogs dies, or neither of the dogs can continue.
Dogs will rarely fight to the death, particularly for no reason, unless trained to do so. In the case of fighting dogs, they are trained with bait animals, which are often puppies and cats. Most of these are either stolen, or acquired through “free pet to good home” ads. Dog handlers create painful stimuli in order to provoke the dog’s aggression prior to the fight, such as by sewing bottle caps into the dog’s skin or burning the dog’s pads.
Dogs which run away from an opponent cause their handlers embarrassment and loss of reputation. As such, handlers will often electrocute the dog as punishment using a car battery or other crude methods. Losers are beaten before being abandoned to die.
Past dog fight raids have resulted in the seizure of more than $500,000 at each fight, and it is not unusual for $20,000-$30,000 to change hands in a single fight. Of course, no winnings are reported to the IRS. Because so much money changes hand, it is an ideal medium for laundering money. Additionally, drug possession, rape, illegal weapon possession, and murders have been associated with animal fighting. Data tends to prove that people who perform acts of cruelty to animals, have a tendency to commit acts of violence against people. In fact, the FBI has recognized the animal cruelty-human violence link since the 1970s as its analysis of serial killers (e.g., Jeffrey Dhamer; Ted Bundy; David Berkowitz; Albert Disalvo, aka the Boston Strangler; Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the Columbine high school shooters; etc.) showed that most had tortured and/or killed animals before moving on to people.
According to the Humane Society of the United States, in 2007:
- Approximately 250,000 dogs (not including bait animals) were placed in dog fighting pits nationwide.
- Approximately 40,000 people were involved in organized dogfighting and an additional 100,000 were involved as street-level, or unorganized, fighters.
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