HOMESTEAD, Fla. – One person was taken into custody on animal cruelty charges after Miami-Dade police carried out a search warrant at a townhouse inside the Keys Cove gated development in Homestead.
Lazaro Ruiz, 26, is charged with animal cruelty and resisting arrest without violence.
The dogs found on Tuesday were mostly pit bull mixes, and they are all now safe in the custody of Animal Services.
Police said some puppies were suffering from obvious injuries when police got the green light to go in, many of which appeared to have been purposefully imposed on the dogs.
According to authorities, Ruiz is a back-door breeder, who illegally breeds pit bulls and Doberman pinchers to fight or to sell.
"I've been involved in animal welfare for 10 years, and honestly this is the most arrogant and outrageous case of abuse I've ever seen," said Jacqueline Johnston of No Paw Left Behind. "There were some bully mix dogs and one bully mix puppy with the ears removed all the way to the base of the ear."
Animal rescue workers were tipped off to this case because of several videos they say Ruiz posted online, which show the dogs being abused.
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