Man Sentenced in Animal Fighting Venture

BUFFALO, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Edward Bishop, also known as Boo, 49, of Buffalo, New York,  who was convicted of  sponsoring an animal in an animal fighting venture, was sentenced to 30 days time served and two years of supervised release with six months of electronic monitoring, by U.S. District Court Chief Judge William M. Skretny. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron J. Mango, who handled the case, stated that stated Bishop was convicted of sponsoring and exhibiting an animal in an animal fighting venture for the purposes of sport, wagering, and entertainment on June 20, 2009. Specifically he allowed a dog he owned to enter into a dog fight with another dog. Bishop had wagered and won approximately $4,000 on the fight.

The sentencing was the culmination of an investigation on the part of special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-In-Charge James H. Robertson. This case also represents one of the first convictions obtained by the recently formed Western New York Animal Fighting Task Force, composed of members of the United States Attorney's Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, Postal Inspection Service, Erie County District Attorney's Office, Erie County SPCA, Chautauqua County Humane Society, and City of Buffalo Animal Shelter.