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« Reply #31 on: September 27, 2009, 08:50:19 AM » |
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A mother-of-three is facing jail after being found guilty of keeping pit bulls and forcing them to fight at her home in one of Europe's largest dog-fighting rings.
Claire Parker, 44, was found guilty alongside five men and a 17-year-old boy of various animal cruelty offences in what the RSPCA has called Britain's biggest case of its kind.
The group was convicted at Lincoln Crown Court and was found to have connections to a dog-fighting syndicate that reached as far as Finland.
When police officers and RSPCA inspectors raided Parker's home they found treadmills, veterinary equipment and breaking sticks used to separate dogs during fights.
They also discovered scales and harnesses for the dogs, which were kept in separate pens to prevent them attacking each other.
A bloodstained dog-fighting pit constructed in the garage of the house was also found.
Pit bulls were held illegally
Parker, of Kexby, Lincolnshire, a mother of three young children, was found guilty of holding a fight in the garage at her home.
She shared the residence with her husband, John Parker. He since died in prison.
The seven were caught as part of two major investigations into dog fighting by the RSPCA's special operations unit, dubbed Operations Cannon and Castle.
An investigation by the BBC's Panorama programme was also vital in sealing the fate of those involved.
Undercover reporter Steve Ibinson, who has also died since, found links to a gang in Northern Ireland, with paramilitary connections, who supplied illegal American pit bull dogs.
Chief inspector Ian Briggs, from the RSPCA, said: "Dog-fighting is a barbaric and cruel so-called sport which belongs in the Dark Ages and horrific suffering is caused to the dogs involved.
"Those that continue to pursue this activity should understand that the RSPCA and the police will continue to bring those responsible before the courts."
Parker and the others found guilty - Mohammed Farooq, 33, Gary Adamson, 38, Kenneth King, 35, Owen Batey, 40, Christopher Burgess, 42, and the 17-year-old who cannot be named - are due to be sentenced on September 25.
The fights all took place in the Lincolnshire area.
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Logged
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He is your friend,your partner, your defender,Your Dog! You are his life,his love,his leader! He will be yours,faithful and true to the last beat of his heart! You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion!
SAVING ONE DOG MAY NOT CHANGE THE WORLD BUT IT SURE WILL CHANGE THE WORLD FOR THAT ONE DOG
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