NM: Prosecutors: ABQ man helped run dogfighting ring

Prosecutors: ABQ man helped run dogfighting ring
By Ryan Boetel / Journal Staff Writer
Published: Sunday, June 25th, 2017 at 6:08pm
Updated: Sunday, June 25th, 2017 at 10:26pm


Baseball seemed to be a recurrent theme during a recent federal court hearing for an Albuquerque man accused of being part of a multistate dogfighting ring.

Prosecutors said Robert Arellano, 63, kept meticulous records of the more than dozen dogs he kept for dogfighting purposes – creating a “baseball card” of each, complete with a photo, fighting stats and identifying some as “Grand Champion.”

Arellano was indicted by a federal Albuquerque grand jury last month on 13 counts of possessing a dog “for purposes of having the dog participate in animal fighting.” Last year, he was arrested and indicted in New Jersey for participating in a multistate dogfighting network, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The New Jersey case is pending.


At the hearing in Albuquerque last week, his attorney, Sam Bregman, asked for a formal, written and detailed description of the case against Arellano. U.S. District Judge Robert Browning denied the motion.

Bregman argued that he hasn’t received any information that indicates the 13 dogs seized from his client’s property in Albuquerque were going to be used in a fight. Federal prosecutors, however, said there is “massive evidence” the dogs were going to be used in fights.

“They’re pets,” Bregman said, adding that there was no “dogfighting paraphernalia” at Arellano’s home. “He’s at a complete loss of what wrongdoing he’s being accused of.”

But prosecutors said Arellano was recorded discussing dogfighting by wiretaps being used in an unrelated drug investigation in New Jersey. And they said that when authorities raided Arellano’s Albuquerque-area home, they found meticulous records and notes about his exploits in the sport. Court documents don’t give the location of the home.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Letitia Simms said Arellano took notes about the dogs’ lineages and instances when dogs escaped their pens and killed each other on his property. They also found an article he wrote about how he got involved in the sport. And government experts will testify that the dogs confiscated on Arellano’s property have injuries consistent with dogfighting, she said.

Arellano also took pictures of dogs, then included their records in dogfighting matches, identifying some as “Grand Champions,” which means they’ve won five fights, and kept statistics on how long it took his dogs to kill other dogs, she said.

“He kept this documentation in a form like baseball cards,” Simms said. “We have massive evidence to show these dogs were all being used in dogfights.”

The dogs are in government custody, and the Humane Society of the United States is helping with their care, according to the news release.


Browning set Arellano’s trial date for Oct. 30, but that’s when baseball again made an appearance.

Browning agreed the Oct. 30 date could be pushed back, depending on how well the Houston Astros do.

Bregman’s son, Alex, plays third base for the Astros. They have the best record in the majors, a 13-game lead over Texas and the Los Angeles Angels in the American League West, and a shot to keep playing in the postseason.

Browning appeared amenable to rescheduling should the Astros play in November – but not before pointing out that the former National League ballclub has never won an American League pennant.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1023508/...ept-stats-created-trading-cards-for-dogs.html