MPD reports finding an assault rifle, more guns at suspected dog-fighting site

An alert citizen who read about the recent arrest of a Homestead resident in connection with cruelty to animals and a suspected dog-fighting operation not only led to the rescue of several more dogs late last week, but also the discovery of weapons including an assault rifle that had been left unattended in an abandoned mobile home, police said Friday.

“The firearms included two shotguns, a handgun and an AK-47,” Maricopa Police Spokesman Sergeant Stephen Judd said Friday, exactly a week after MPD seized the weapons.

One of the guns, a rifle, was found in the dirt along with three decomposing dog carcasses and one dog that appeared to have just died in a trailer lot adjacent to the John Wayne RV Park where State Route 347 meets State Route 84.

Thirteen of 14 dogs found in the yard were tied out on chains without food or water. Pinal County Animal Care and Control removed them, and the carcasses, on June 6 (see “Pinal County rescues 14 more dogs, finds four dead in suspected dog-fighting case”).

Animal Control returned on Sunday to retrieve a lone dog that was roaming the property without restraint and could not be easily collected on their first visit, Judd said.

So far, including seven pit bull and pit bull mixes the county removed June 4 from the home of Damien Hartfield at the time of his arrest, the Maricopa resident could be facing charges of cruelty related to the mistreatment of 35 dogs (see “Police remove 7 pit bulls from suspected dog-fighting operation in Homestead”).

It’s the first animal cruelty case since its inception that MPD has referred to the Office of the Pinal County Attorney.

Judd said MPD withheld information from the public regarding the additional animals and weapons until investigators could make a positive connection between the two incidents, linking them both to Hartfield.

In both cases, animals were not fed or watered properly. And, in both cases, police found guns not commonly used for personal protection.

“They had some serious fire power,” Judd said of the dozen or so rifles and other guns taken while serving the second of two search warrants at Hartfield’s home.

All of the animals remain in custody of Pinal County Animal Control. Detectives have not received an update on the condition of the dogs, Judd said, adding that it was unclear whether all of the animals were fighters or if any of them might have been females designated to breed.

Although police said they suspect Hartfield’s cruelty goes beyond not providing proper care for his animals, he is not yet facing charges related specifically to staging dog fights or training dogs to compete.

“We have not seen or caught anyone dog fighting,” Judd said. “There is purely evidence directing us to that assumption.”

Additional charges are pending review by the Office of the Pinal County Attorney, and additional charges will likely be filed once the investigation is complete, Judd said.

“They need to make sure first they have everything they need to prosecute,” Judd explained.

Dog fights, for example, cannot take place in a vacuum.

“Additional participants in criminal matters are always a dynamic when you investigate crimes; however, at this point no additional suspects have been identified, and Mr. Hartfield has been uncooperative in relaying more information,” Judd said.

Animal Care and Control did not return a phone call seeking information on the animals’ condition.

Photo by RuthAnn Hogue