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Case #14557 Rating: 1.4 out of 5
Dog-fighting - 27 dogs seized
Round Lake Beach, IL (US)Incident Date: Thursday, Sep 11, 2008
County: Lake
Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted
Defendants/Suspects:
» Moises Colon
» Estella Gonzalez
Case Updates: 3 update(s) available
A Round Lake Beach man remained jailed Friday on charges of dog fighting and aggravated cruelty in connection with the seizure of 27 pit bulls at his home.
Moises Colon, 33, and Estella Gonzalez, 24, both of 1624 Poplar Ave., also were charged with cruel treatment. Colon was held on $75,000 bond. Gonzalez posted bail on her $20,000 bond and was released.
Police using a search warrant Thursday found the dogs, which appeared to be malnourished, injured and kenneled in their own feces in the garage.
The remains of a dead dog were dug up in the back yard, and inside the house, police said, they found a manual for dog fighting, pictures of dog fighting and numerous drugs used for the breeding of animals. Also in the back yard, police said they found a wooden board suspended from a tree with bite marks.
The Lake County Health Department took custody of the dogs, which were still being held Friday night at the animal control facility in Mundelein. The male and female dogs were a range of ages, according to Tiffany Bronk, health department spokeswoman.
"There are seven puppies. Five of them are very young - they're still nursing with their mom," she said. "The vet checked them out. There were no critical major health concerns with any of the dogs."
They will continue to be held until a "status of forfeiture hearing" on Thursday, Sept. 25. If they're seized, they will be evaluated on an individual basis to determine the disposition of the dogs.
"A lot of these dogs might be able to be pets. We caught it early enough," said Round Lake Beach Police Deputy Chief Rich Chiarello. "We're not under the opinion that the fighting was actually occurring there. We think it's where they were housed and trained."
A preliminary hearing for Colon and Gonzalez is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 6.
Case UpdatesA Round Lake Beach man was sentenced to two years in prison Wednesday for running a dogfighting operation out of his home.
Lake County Circuit Judge Fred Foreman said the poor performance posted by Moises Colon during previous stints on probation made it impossible for him to consider another one.
Colon, 35, pleaded guilty in October to a felony charge of dogfighting and faced up to three years in prison.
Assistant State's Attorney Scott Hoffert said Colon had previously been convicted of burglary in 1997, battery in 1998 and drug possession in 2007. After the 1997 and 1998 convictions, Hoffert said, Colon violated his probation by not paying restitution and periodically failing to report to his probation officer.
Colon also violated his probation on the 2007 conviction, Hoffert said, by being charged in the dogfighting case.
On Sept. 11, 2008, Round Lake Beach police took a search warrant to Colon's home in the 1600 block of Poplar Avenue. They found 27 pit bulls kenneled in the garage, manuals on dog fighting and equipment used to train dogs for fighting.
Most of the adult dogs had to be destroyed, Hoffert said, while the puppies in the group were put up for adoption.
Colon was arrested along with his girlfriend and mother of his daughter, Estella Gonzalez, 25, who pleaded guilty to misdemeanor attempted dog fighting in October and was placed on probation for two years.
Hoffert said Colon should be sentenced to the full three-year prison term for his unwillingness to comply with the rules of probation and because of the nature of the new offense.
"This crime is heinous," Hoffert told Foreman. "These animals cannot defend themselves, so they depend on the courts to defend them."
Waukegan defense attorney Elliot Pinsel asked Foreman to consider another term of probation for Colon, perhaps including some local jail time.
"He is employed and needs to support his daughter," Pinsel said. "You have someone here you can do something with."
But Foreman said he wanted to send a message to the community in his sentence for Colon.
"This is a very serious offense and there should be no question about it," Foreman said.
"This is not a sport; it has a very traumatic effect on the dogs involved." | Source: Daily Herald - Dec 18, 2009
Update posted on Feb 24, 2010 - 1:11PM |
A Round Lake Beach couple accused of running a dogfighting operation out of their home pleaded guilty Tuesday in Lake County circuit court.
Moises Colon, 35, faces up to three years in prison but will also be eligible for probation when he returns to court Dec. 16 to be sentenced for felony dogfighting.
Estella Gonzalez, 25, was placed on probation for two years after pleading guilty to misdemeanor attempted dog fighting.
Assistant State's Attorney Scott Hoffert said Round Lake Beach police brought a search warrant to the couple's home in the 1600 block of Poplar Avenue on Sept. 11, 2008.
They found 27 pit bulls kenneled in the garage, manuals on dog fighting and equipment used to train dogs for fighting.
The couple was also ordered to pay $6,675 to the Round Lake Beach Police Department for the cost of kenneling the dogs.
Hoffert said Colon admitted that he was the person most responsible for the dogfighting operation and asked that authorities reduce the charge against Gonzalez.
Gonzalez was also ordered to make a $1,000 donation to Lake County Crime Stoppers and to perform 100 hours of community service as part of her sentence. | Source: Daily Herald - Oct 20, 2009
Update posted on Oct 26, 2009 - 5:22PM |
Two Round Lake Beach residents arrested last month on a host of dog fighting charges denied the accusations in court Wednesday.
Moises Colon, 34, and Estella Gonzalez, 24, both of 1624 Poplar Ave., pleaded not guilty to 43 counts of dog fighting and aggravated cruelty to animals.
The two were indicted last week on charges that they had 27 pit bulls at their residence when police raided the home in mid-September.
During a search of the home, Round Lake Beach officers found a manual on dog fighting as well as drugs used on the animals. Some of the dogs found in the home were sick or injured and covered in their own feces.
Officers also found the remains of several dogs buried in the backyard of the property.
Dog fighting is a Class 4 felony, punishable by up to three years in prison.
Colon and Gonzalez have both bonded out of jail, posting $3,500 and $1,000 respectively. Their next court date is Nov. 13. | Source: Suburban Chicago News - Oct 30, 2008
Update posted on Nov 2, 2008 - 3:33PM |
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