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PHILADELPHIA — Investigators interrupted a front-room dogfight inside a Philadelphia rowhouse and went on to arrest 14 people at four sites while recovering drugs, weapons and more than $10,000 cash, an animal-welfare group said.
Authorities also rescued 26 dogs, including two dogs badly injured in the fight and seven puppies believed to have been bred for fighting, a Pennsylvania SPCA spokeswoman said. The puppies were found in crates in a basement.
“We think this was a pretty big ring,” SPCA spokeswoman Wendy Marano said. This wasn’t just a corner pick-up fight. It was organized.”
The arrests late Sunday and Monday capped months of investigation and may lead to suspects beyond Pennsylvania.
Investigators also found weapons, marijuana and heroin, and more than $10,000 in cash, which Marano said could be from gambling proceeds, at the other sites in North Philadelphia.