New charges laid in ongoing dogfighting investigation in southwestern Ontario

By The Canadian Press

CHATHAM, Ont. – Police have laid new charges in connection with an alleged dogfighting ring in southwestern Ontario.

Chatham-Kent police say they’ve laid three new animal cruelty charges against Robert Tomlin, 32, of Kent Bridge, Ont.

Tomlin has also been charged with seven offences under the Dog Owners’ Liability Act for allegedly owning pit bulls — which are banned in Ontario. The animals were seized in early March.

Const. Renee Cowell says Tomlin had been previously charged with two counts of animal cruelty.

Police say the latest charges are related to an investigation into a dogfighting ring at a different property near Chatham, Ont., where four people face more than 300 charges.

The case has taken on national prominence as the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has applied to court to destroy 21 dogs that were seized as part of that investigation because they have deemed them a menace to society unfit for rehabilitation.

The case to euthanize those dogs returns to court on April 18.

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