FBI investigating suspected KC area dog fighting ring after recent fight in Raytown
The FBI was investigating a suspected dog fighting ring based in the Kansas City metropolitan area that may have been operating over at least the past two years, according to court records.
The FBI was made aware of the illegal activity by a confidential source who was invited to attend a recent event in Raytown, according to an affidavit filed last month in federal court seeking permission for a search warrant.
The informant told the FBI there were five dog fights held April 30 at a vacant retail space, the document says. Roughly 60 people paid $200 apiece to attend, and an estimated five people provided security at the event by taking attendees’ cellphones at the door, the informant told investigators.
Authorities suspect the fights may be connected to others believed to have occurred in Kansas City between 2020 and 2021.
In one, the document says, Kansas City police were called after receiving multiple complaints to the backyard of a home where a dog-fighting ring was believed to be housed. There they found a tent with what appeared to be drops of blood on its sides and “pieces of carpet that were soaked with a substance that looked like blood,” the document says.
The FBI asked a federal judge for a search warrant to obtain electronic information from cellphones associated with one person suspected of organizing the fights. The Star is not naming that person as no charges had been filed in the case as of July 5.
During the investigation, the affidavit says investigators went to a listed address for the suspect in May in Kansas City. They were told the person was not home, and observed several dogs in cages in the backyard that appeared to be a breed “consistent with fighting dogs,” according to the affidavit.
Under federal law, dog fighting is illegal as part of the Animal Welfare Act. Sponsoring or putting an animal in an organized fight carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison plus a fine. Attending such an event can carry up to one year in prison.
This story was originally published July 6, 2022 at 7:55 AM.
