Ex-NFL player LeShon Johnson’s dog-fighting ring is believed to be the largest-ever seizure of dogs in a federal case, according to the Justice Department, and the former Giants running back allegedly described the dog bloodline he cultivated as “nice and nasty.”
Johnson was found guilty last week of violating the federal Animal Welfare Act’s prohibitions against possessing, selling, transporting and delivering animals to be used in fighting ventures by a federal judge in Oklahoma.
The jury found Johnson guilty on six of 23 counts.
An electronic device seized from Johnson allegedly includes images of a dog on a treadmill and photos of dead and maimed dogs, The Oklahoman reported on March 29.
Johnson made his alleged “nice and nasty” comment in a since-obtained phone conversation with a government informant, according to the paper.
The authorities seized 190 “pit bull-type dogs,” which federal law enforcement said were used in an “animal-fighting venture,” from Johnson’s residence and “off-site yard” in Oklahoma last October.
The Oklahoman also reported that a spreadsheet includes digital financial records through Cash App that allegedly show transactions for “fighting dogs,” with some interstate and others international.
In the trial, prosecutors offered evidence that Johnson bred and trafficked dogs for the intention of fighting through his “Mal Kant Kennels” operation.
Johnson claimed that Mal Kent Kennels was a legitimate breeding business, but prosecutors argued that Johnson knew he was raising dogs that would be used in dog fights.
The business produced $400,000 in sales over a four-year span leading up to Johnson’s arrest, according to the Tulsa World.
Johnson pleaded guilty to animal fighting charges in Oklahoma District Court in 2004 and was granted a five-year deferred sentence, long before his latest charge.
A third round selection of Green Bay in the 1994 draft, Johnson played five NFL seasons between the Packers, Cardinals and Giants, who he played for in 1999.