Reward Offered To People Who Report Organized Animal Fights

Posted by Eddie Ho in Los Angeles, CA (03/27/2008)

LOS ANGELES -- People who report dog-fighting and cock-fighting rings to authorities will be eligible for $5,000 rewards from the Humane Society of the United States, officials announced Thursday.

Animal fighting rings are "relatively large and relatively undetected," said District Attorney Steve Cooley. "We need to have more sources of information willing to cooperate with law enforcement."

People can report cases of animal fighting or abuse by calling Los Angeles County's hotline at 2-1-1.

To show what can happen to dogs used in organized fights, authorities brought Red, a 5-year-old pit bull, to a Thursday morning news conference. Red was one of 11 dogs rescued from a fighting ring two months ago. She is underweight and bares scars from the fights, but officials said she has a sweet disposition.

Other dogs are abandoned or abused once they are done fighting, said Eric Sakach of the Humane Society.

"We've seen many cases where the dogs have flammable liquids splashed on them (and) set on fire. We've encountered dogs that have been thrown into cages and left to starve to death," Sakach said. "The mind of the person who is involved in this sort of activity is really reaching into some depths where people shouldn't go."

In addition to animal cruelty, animal fighting rings often involve drugs and violence, Cooley said.

"There are going to be people who bring weapons to these public settings because of the amount of money changing hands. The presence of drugs and, of course, the very nature of the kind of individuals who are going to attend these kinds of events -- these are not the most savory of our citizens."

The Humane Society rewards are available to individuals who provide information that leads to the arrest and conviction of those involved in the fights. The society previously offered $2,500 rewards to tipsters, but a donation from the Holland M. Ware Charitable Foundation enabled the group to increase the rewards to $5,000.

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