Dog-fighting and neglect, 15 dogs
Wadsworth, IL (US)

Incident Date: Friday, Sep 27, 2002
County: Lake

Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted

Defendants/Suspects:
» Arthur Mitsias
» Jason Mitsias

Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

15 pit bull dogs were found chained to stakes. Most were malnourished, dehydrated and had wounds from apparent fighting. Several fighting rings were on the site.

10 of the dogs had to be euthanized because they were extremely aggressive. 3 pups were placed for adoption through Orphans of the Storm in Riverwood, Illinois. The remaining dogs were being held at the county Animal Control Shelter near Mundelein.

In October only a few days of the dog's placement at the shelter, a night break-in resulted in the theft of 2 dogs, the dominant male and a female. They were scheduled to be put down. The burglary has not yet been solved.

The father and son were charged, following a search of the property at 16795 Wadsworth Rd. which was rented by the son. Sheriff's searched the property after residents complained of a loose pit bull roaming the area of Route 41 and Wadsworth Rd. Equipment used to train the animals, steroids and syringes were found along with the 15 chained dogs. One dog was shot and killed on the property after it charged an animal warden.

The son was a fugitive from justice but was arrested 4 months later. They have both been charged with 9 counts of a Class A misdemeanor offenses. The prosecutors say the evidence thus far doesn't support felony charges. Initially they were charged wtih 2 Class C misdemeanors.

The prosecution contends that the father and son allegeldy ran a pit bull training facility.

Initially the son was charged with only 2 misdemeanors. In April 2003, new charges were added including possession of a treadmill, and a metal pole hook. Trainers sometimes place dogs in a harness and run them on a treadmill, to build up endurance. The hooks are hung from the celing and the dogs bit and hold onto the lower hook to build up their biting strength.

Jason was arrested after being recognized by a police officer in an attempt to pull him over for a traffic violation. Jason was also charged with resisting arrest, as well as unlawful possession of cannabis, failure to yield to an emergency response vehicle and disobeying a stop sign. Mitsias posted $2,500 bail and was released.

Arthur Mitsias plead not guilty at his hearing in Lake County /Circuit Court on 12/6/02. The case is continued to May 16th, 2003.

Case Updates

References

Not sure what these icons mean? Click here.

Note: Classifications and other fields should not be used to determine what specific charges the suspect is facing or was convicted of - they are for research and statistical purposes only. The case report and subsequent updates outline the specific charges. Charges referenced in the original case report may be modified throughout the course of the investigation or trial, so case updates, when available, should always be considered the most accurate reflection of charges.

For more information regarding classifications and usage of this database, please visit the database notes and disclaimer.