Animal Abuse: Dog-fighting - 2 injured dogs seized - Albuquerque, NM

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Case ID: 15838

Classification: Fighting

Animal: dog (pit-bull)

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Dog-fighting - 2 injured dogs seized
Albuquerque, NM (US)

Incident Date: Thursday, Sep 3, 2009
County: Bernalillo

Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Alleged

Alleged:
» Ray Padilla
» Patrick Sanchez
» Cesar Meza

Case Updates: 2 update(s) available

Bernalillo County deputies broke up a suspected dog fight in the south Valley Thursday after people heard horrible sounds coming from a home and called deputies.

Veteran officers said the gory scene made their stomachs turn.

Deputies say nearly a dozen calls flooded 911 at about 6 p.m., Thursday, and when they got to the home near Arenal and Isleta, they found a house full of people watching two dogs fight.

Deputies say the spectators tried scattering in all directions to get away, but they managed to detain everyone.

The sheriff says it didn't appear to be a very sophisticated operation, and it's not clear if people were watching for entertainment or if they were gambling.

Deputies say there were only two dogs at the home, but both were badly injured and may have to be put down.

They say one of the suspects tried to hide when deputies raided the fight.

Sheriff Darren White said Thursday, "One of the suspects actually used the dog as a shield; he was hiding in the closet, and had the dog sitting on top of them, with clothes surrounding them, because he's such a coward."

The Sheriff says the inside of the house looks like a crime scene with blood splattered on the walls.

He says the Michael Vick case has made more people aware of dog fighting, and he thinks that's why so many people called 911.

Case Updates

The story between Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Deputy Sam Ungaro and Leonitus has a happy ending, but started in a much different place under very different circumstances.

On Sept. 3, Bernallillo County officials said they found a dog fighting operation inside a home in the South Valley.

Two pit bulls were part of the ring and have since failed temperament tests and will likely have to be euthanized.

Leonitus was also there and Deputy Ungaro said the boxer wasn’t fighting, but may have been used to train the other dogs.

Ungaro’s co-workers told him about the boxer the next day and he went to the shelter and adopted him.

"You can't save them all, but at least I was able to get this guy out of a bad situation,” Ungaro said.

Six people have been arrested in the dog fighting case, but investigators say there were at least 40 people there that night and they need cell phone video so they can make more arrests.

If you have information call 1-877-5-HUMANE and you could earn a reward of up to $5,000.

Source: KOAT - Oct 20, 2009
Update posted on Oct 26, 2009 - 5:37PM

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Four of five men arrested in a dog fighting bust this week were in Albuquerque Metropolitan Court Saturday.

Judge Daniel Ramczyk described suspect Ray Padilla's as a danger to the public, refusing to lower his bond.

The suspects were arrested Thursday night after sheriff's deputies busted what they called a scheduled dog fight.

The bloody brawl left two pit bulls injured.

Only one suspect had had bond raised. Patrick Sanchez now faces a $50,000 bond.

Cesar Meza was the only suspect that was not in court Saturday.

Source: KRQE.com - Sep 5, 2009
Update posted on Oct 5, 2009 - 4:43PM

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Dog-fighting - 2 injured dogs seizedAlbuquerque, NM (US)

Case Updates

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Dog-fighting - 2 injured dogs seized
Albuquerque, NM (US)