An ex-NFL player has been convicted in a dogfighting case. A record number of dogs were taken from him

By Rebekah Riess, CNN

(CNN) — A former NFL player has been convicted for running an operation that bred and trafficked “grand champion” dogs and their offspring for dogfighting, the Department of Justice said.

LeShon Johnson, 54, a former running back for the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and New York Giants, was convicted by a federal jury in Oklahoma on six felony counts of violating the federal Animal Welfare Act’s prohibitions against “possessing, selling, transporting, and delivering animals to be used in fighting ventures,” the department said.

Following the verdict, the ex-NFLer surrendered 190 dogs from his “Mal Kant Kennels,” the largest number ever seized from a single person in a federal dogfighting case, officials said. He faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count.

“My client respects the verdict,” defense attorney Courtney Jordan told CNN, noting Johnson was convicted of only six of 23 counts. “The jury saw there is more to this story than what the government has made it out to be. He is a family man, a good person who loves his dogs. He was never involved in dogfighting himself, per se.”

“The American goverment is really after the American pit bull terrier, and that’s what LeShon Johnson was breading,” Jordan added.

Johnson’s conviction recalls the 2007 federal case against then-NFL quarterback Michael Vick, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy involving illegal dogfighting. Admitting he participated in killing dogs and ran a business that involved illegal gambling, Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison. After his 2009 release, he advocated against dogfighting, returned to the NFL and now coaches a college team.

While dogfighting is a felony in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, more than 40,000 people participate in enterprises that breed, condition and train dogs to be “placed in a pit to fight each other for spectator entertainment and profit,” the Humane Society of the United States and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals say.

Johnson had a 2004 state conviction for dogfighting, the Justice Department said. In the federal case against him, Johnson bred and trafficked “fighting dogs” and their puppies for dogfighting, “profiting from the cruel and illegal industry,” evidence presented to the jury showed.

“This criminal profited off of the misery of innocent animals and he will face severe consequences for his vile crimes,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement.

“This case underscores the Department of Justice’s commitment to protecting animals from abuse – 190 dogs are now safe thanks to outstanding collaborative work by our attorneys and law enforcement components.”

The federal government is pursuing the forfeiture of the dogs, after which the US Marshals Service would care for them, the department said.

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