NAPERVILLE, Ill. — The HSUS is offering a $1,000 reward for
information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person
or persons responsible for stealing six dogs last month from
the Randolph County Animal Shelter in Asheboro. The dogs were
six of a dozen pit bulls being held as evidence in a
dogfighting case.
According to news reports, the dogs are evidence in felony
cases against two men arrested in connection with an alleged
Trinity dogfighting ring. Police are still searching for the
dogs. A Randolph County health department official said it is
the first time since 1997 that the shelter had been broken into
and had animals stolen, according to reports. The Randolph
County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the case.
Dogfighting is illegal in all 50 states and the District of
Columbia.
“These dogs may have been taken back into the underworld of
dogfighting,” said Jennifer Schwade-Brown, senior program
specialist with The Humane Society of the U.S. Central States
Regional Office in Illinois. The HSUS Central States Office
serves the states of North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky,
Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois.
“In that arena, dogs have a miserable existence of being
trained to fight other dogs to the death for gambling contests
and perverse entertainment for spectators,” Schwade-Brown said.
“These dogs are subjected to cruel treatment their whole lives.
Their confiscation and placement at the shelter was the best
thing that could have happened to these dogs. Now they may be
back in the hands of dogfighters. We encourage anyone with
information about this case to contact the police.”
Anyone with information about this case is asked to contact
the Randolph County Sheriff’s Department at 336-318-6699 or
336-819-3699 in the High Point area.
The Humane Society of the United States is the nation’s
largest animal protection organization with more than seven
million members and constituents, including 127,723 in North
Carolina.
