Federal authorities have charged LeShon Johnson, an All-American running back at Northern Illinois in 1993 who played five seasons in the NFL, with running a massive dogfighting ring in his native Oklahoma.
Johnson, 54, received an indictment Tuesday for violating the Animal Welfare Act. The Justice Department said that authorities seized 190 dogs from Johnson's property, "believed to be the largest number of dogs ever seized from a single person in a federal dog fighting case."
"Animal abuse is cruel, depraved, and deserves severe punishment," Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a Justice Department release. "The Department of Justice will prosecute this case to the fullest extent of the law and will remain committed to protecting innocent animals from those who would do them harm."
Johnson previously pled guilty to dog fighting charges in the mid-2000s, receiving a suspended sentence in 2005.
The Haskell, Okla. native finished sixth in the Heisman voting with the Huskies in '93, and played professionally for the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and New York Giants.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Ex-Northern Illinois, NFL Running Back LeShon Johnson Charged in Dogfighting Case.
