HARRISON COUNTY, Texas — An East Texas man is behind bars for dog fighting and more arrests are expected.
According to the Harrison County Sheriff's Office, on Saturday, deputies, along with Texas Parks and Wildlife Game Warden, responded to the 100 block of Strickland Springs in reference to possible dog fighting.
The HCSO says when deputies and Game Warden arrived at the location, they found a crowd of nearly 100 people.
"The initial thought was, 'well, this is just a pasture party with adults,' but that quickly changed once they discovered evidence of dogfighting (several malnourished K9's, K9 weights, dozens of kennels with blood, Etc.)," the HCSO said in a statement.
The HCSO says the scene quickly became chaotic as the crowd began leaving the location.
A dog was rescued from the location that had injuries consistent with dog fighting. The HCSO says the dog was extremely malnourished and packed in a small kennel. The dog was released to Marshall Police Animal Control, but it was euthanized due to the severity of its injuries.
The HCSO arrested Jesus Stephens for dog fighting and animal cruelty.
"Dog fighting is an organized criminal enterprise that a nationwide problem," said Sheriff B.J. Fletcher. "The violence these K9s endured is horrific and will not be tolerated. Our Deputies and Game Warden did an outstanding job, and this is a prime example of the unknowns Law Enforcement encounter daily."
The investigation is ongoing.
