The U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday that former NFL running back LeShon Johnson is facing federal charges of allegedly running a massive dog-fighting operation that led to law enforcement seizing nearly 200 dogs last October under the Animal Welfare Act. Johnson, who spent five seasons in the NFL mostly with the Arizona Cardinals, is accused of having nearly 200 “pit bull-type” dogs that he had been selling, transporting and delivering in a dog-fighting venture.
Through an operation called “Mal Kant Kennels,” Johnson allegedly run at least two dog-fighting operations in a pair of Oklahoma towns, selectively breeding “champion” and “grand champion” dogs from those who had won multiple fights in order to create offspring for the purpose of fighting. He is also accused of selling stud rights and the offspring of winning dogs to other dog-fighting operations.
The operation was rebuked at the highest levels of U.S. law enforcement, with Attorney General Pam Bondi calling the abuse “cruel” and “depraved” while FBI Director Kash Patel referred to the practice of dog-fighting as a “twisted form of entertainment.”
“Dog fighting is a cruel, blood-thirsty venture, not a legitimate business or sporting activity,” Christopher Wilson, the U.S. attorney for the eastern district of Oklahoma, said in a statement. “I applaud the investigative work of the FBI and the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division in detecting and dismantling breeding operations which only serve to propagate this deplorable conduct.”
A unanimous All-American at Northern Illinois in 1993, Johnson was chosen by the Green Bay Packers in the third round of the 1994 NFL Draft before playing for the Cardinals from 1995 to 1997. After a lymphoma diagnosis prevented him from playing in 1998, Johnson returned to football with the New York Giants in 1999 before finishing his career with the Chicago Enforcers of the XFL.
Johnson had previously pled guilty to animal fighting charges at the state level in 2004 for operating “Krazyside Kennels,” receiving a five-year deferred sentence in Oklahoma. Johnson now faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count he is charged with.
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