Dog Fighting Ring Centered Around Tri-State Man

Investigators are now saying that the biggest dogfighting bust in Ohio history is larger than they first thought and one of the major players nationwide is from Cincinnati.

In the secret world of dogfighting, police say he's known as O.G. or Rastaman and 46 year old Terry Kendrick who is a father from College Hill faces state and federal charges.

"We understand this man to be a significant player in the dogfighting underworld," said John Goodwin from the Humane Society.

Goodwin said that investigators have been watching him for years. In 1999, Kendrick was convicted of possessing drugs and owning 12 pit bulls when the breed was outlawed in the city.

Now the charges are much more serious. Kendrick faces federal animal fighting and illegal gambling charges plus state indictments of possessing and trafficking marijuana and dogfighting.

Goodwin told FOX19 News that he was an active participant in the ring, "We have seen his name in countless fight reports, both as a participant and referee." The fights are so violent that dogs have had their jaws broken and have bled to death in the pit. All the while, their owners were making big money. Goodwin said that as much as 10 to 20 thousand dollars were waged on the fights. "There was actually a dog fight in Texas last summer where a man won 100,000 dollars and then four people who were at the fight trailed him home and later killed him to get that cash back."

Magazines and web sites track the winners and their breeding much like horse racing and are also used to promote fights. That information led investigators to find people betting on the fights in Dayton from as far away as Detroit and Pennsylvania.

Goodwin said that it is a criminal underworld and the fighting is something a lot of criminals do for their idea of recreation.

Report: FOX19 News