ARIZONA NEWS

Arizona man accused of hoarding 69 dogs that attacked livestock near his residence

Dec 22, 2023, 8:00 PM

A team of law enforcement officers and detectives rescued 69 dogs from a hoarding situation on Wedn...

Officials seized 69 dogs from the property in north Arizona. (Mohave County Sheriff's Office Photo)

(Mohave County Sheriff's Office Photo)

PHOENIX — A team of law enforcement officers and detectives rescued 69 dogs from a hoarding situation on Wednesday, officials said.

The seizure came in the wake of an investigation of animal hoarding at a property in Dolan Springs, which is in northwest Arizona.

“The investigation began when our range detective was notified that some of the involved dogs were at large and attacking livestock in the area,” according to an announcement from the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO).

How bad was the alleged hoarding situation in north Arizona?

Reports of injured livestock spurred officials to obtain a search warrant for the property, where they found dozens of dogs behind a chain-link fence.

Detectives and officers extracted the dogs from the property where Pablo Cruz-Sanchez lived, the MCSO announcement said.

Cruz-Sanchez now faces a litany of charges for allegedly letting his dogs run free to wound and kill livestock in the area.

A spokesperson with the department clarified that Cruz-Sanchez isn’t accused of hurting the livestock himself.

Instead, he’s being held accountable for anything his dogs may have done to other animals in the area.

“The charges mean he is legally responsible for the damage caused by his animals,” MCSO spokeswoman Anita Mortensen told the Las Vegas Review Journal. “Not that the attacks were intentional.”

Additional charges for criminal damage the dogs may have caused is pending, officials said.

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Arizona man accused of hoarding 69 dogs that attacked livestock near his residence