Neglect of 45 dogs
Moosic, PA (US)Incident Date: Thursday, Feb 29, 1996
County: Lackawanna
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: John C. Tanis, III
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
In March 1996, he was arrested by Lackawanna County officials after they found two illegal firearms and 45 dogs on his mother's property where he lived in Moosic. He was placed in Lackawanna County Jail on weapons charges. He pleaded guilty to the dog law violations.
He posted bail but was arrested shortly after for failing to raise an additional $25,000 in bail. His bail was raised because of the nearly 200 charges related to the mistreatment of animals. Before his second arrest, officials set up a sting operation after Tanis posted a sign in his mother's window to sell puppies. According to an article printed in The Scranton Times in November 1996, Tanis sold a dog for $400 to an undercover officer but was unable to supply the dog with American Kennel Club papers as he advertised, which led to a charge of theft. State Dog Officer Ron Lupin filed 13 misdemeanor charges and seven summaries against Tanis following the sting operation
Case UpdatesFugitive dog breeder nabbed at New York airport
A Wyoming County dog breeder accused of operating illegal puppy mills has been caught.
According to Wyoming County District Attorney George Skumanick Jr., John C. Tanis III was nabbed at John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City, on Sunday and is in custody in New York.
An extradition hearing has been scheduled and Skumanick said he expects Tanis to be returned to Wyoming County sometime this week.
Tanis has run up a lengthy list of convictions for animal cruelty and other offenses in Pennsylvania and New Jersey since 1996.
On Jan. 12, he was fined $11,080 and given a suspended 60-day prison sentence on animal cruelty and abuse charges in a 9-year-old case in New Jersey after police caught up with him during a Dec. 24 traffic stop.
Tanis was allegedly delivering puppies to customers.
Tanis failed to appear in Wyoming County Court on Jan. 14 for further court action on animal neglect charges and was declared a fugitive. He allegedly called the Wyoming County sheriff about two weeks ago and said he's out of the state and not coming back, said Skumanick.
In late January humane officers seized 31 dogs from an unlicensed kennel owned by Tanis in Eaton Township. The dogs were outside without any shelter, and some didn't have any food or water. The dogs have since been adopted out.
A condition of Tanis' bail from previous cases is that he isn't allowed to have more than two dogs, humane officials said.
Tanis has been charged 279 times in Pennsylvania with animal neglect and abuse, and numerous times in New Jersey. | | Update posted on Feb 10, 2004 - 9:49AM |
References« PA State Animal Cruelty Map
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