INDIANAPOLIS — Seven men were arrested in central Indiana Wednesday as authorities continued an investigation into alleged dog fighting and drug trafficking, officials said.
On Dec. 6, several agencies served search warrants in Indianapolis, Anderson and Muncie, resulting in the new arrests, which were connected with a September indictment of 21 people for allegedly "trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine; money laundering; illegally possessing firearms; and dog fighting," according to the Department of Justice.
"These are fairly organized and sophisticated criminal operations with people having defined roles managing these fights. Training and, frankly, torturing dogs to participate in it, to use drugs or tools to force the dogs to become more aggressive towards each other and making them fight to the death for the entertainment and gambling of the criminals that think that this is fun," said US Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana Zachary Myers.
A spokesperson with the FBI confirmed two of those locations were in the areas of East 30th Street and North Keystone Avenue, and East 25th Street and North Post Road.
"There are allegedly rules that they follow, handbooks people find and people that distribute and there’s this underground culture of just lawless, frankly, evil engaging in these dog fights," said Myers.
13News crews witnessed dogs and dog training equipment being taken out of homes.
These are the seven men the DOJ said had been charged with "conspiracy to engage in an animal fighting venture" following Wednesday's investigation:
- Ryan Hicks, 37
- Willie Lee, 47
- Marven Carswell, 71
- Ernest Young, 49
- Brent Hutchinson, 43
- Robert Hamer, 41
- Daymond Mason, 49
If convicted, the men could face up to five years in federal prison, the DOJ said.
"For whatever reason, the people who have been desensitized to this kind of violence, have gotten to the point where they think it’s entertainment," said Myers. "They need to know that law enforcement is coming."
The FBI Indianapolis office; U.S. Department of Agriculture-Office of Inspector General; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Drug Enforcement Administration; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; Indiana Gaming Commission; and IMPD assisted in the investigation.
Federal agents are still searching for Gregory Henderson Jr., who they say was a major supplier of drugs in the area and was involved in dog fighting. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to Henderson's arrest.
Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to dial 1-800-CALL-FBI or email the tip to: https://tips.fbi.gov/home.
“Dogfighting is one of the most despicable crimes. This interdiction in Indiana is important to show zero tolerance for this kind of unvarnished cruelty to animals,” Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action, said in a statement. “Only with this kind of strenuous enforcement will we see the demise of dogfighting in our nation, which is a crime that is almost always bound up with drug trafficking and illicit weapons.”