FLOYD COUNTY, Ga. — A Rome man is in jail after an investigation revealed he was training dogs to fight.
The Floyd County Police said Jacob Driver Jr., 50, was arrested at his home Tuesday morning and charged with felony violation of the dog fighting statute and cruelty to animals.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
The arrest followed an investigation that found he was operating a facility in Floyd County where he would train and condition fighting dogs.
Police removed 17 pit bulls from one location. The dogs were found chained in the half-acre yard behind a privacy fence, and one other was found at his home.
The investigation showed Driver was tracking the history and performance of his animals to prove their value and advertise them as good breeding dogs.
Evidence found at his operation matches others who train and groom the animals for sport fighting.
Police searched Driver’s home on East 20th Street and a vacant house at 60 Weathington Road where he kept the dogs. When police arrived, the dogs were restrained with heavy industrial chains anchored in the ground by car axles that were buried in the ground.
Floyd County Public Works assisted police with pulling the heavy anchors from the ground to destroy the illegal training facility.
TRENDING STORIES:
- 15-year-old girl murdered in her bed at Peachtree City apartment complex, police say
- Lane closures set before major construction project begins on deadliest interchange in Georgia
- GA woman accused of stealing press-on nails, glue & eyeliner from Dollar General
Evidence found at the location indicates the dogs were groomed to increase agitation and hostility toward other dogs. Equipment at the house is similar to evidence found in dog fighting cases.
Police said the equipment builds strength and endurance and includes thick collars, heavy chains and weighted vests.
The combined weight of the 17 chains was 169 pounds; the heaviest chain was 20 pounds.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
IN OTHER NEWS:
:quality(70)/d1hfln2sfez66z.cloudfront.net/02-22-2023/t_dba59e966ed64412a74a2c85da51c532_name_DUMPING_BOULDERCREST_DEK.jpeg)
©2022 Cox Media Group
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/ZAYTSGF2CZF63ENV6SO45VPLWY.jpg)
:quality(70)/d1hfln2sfez66z.cloudfront.net/04-18-2024/t_9c015490768b44a2868ba1fad0758337_name_T1A___TREE_HOUSE_AIRBNB_VO__transfer_frame_225.jpeg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/CEUTW7B2JNERRP5OOHPUXJNJSM.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/6IRW26KKM5GAHASQVE4WNYIDKA.png)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/FRDLSPMFEVAT7C27HKYW3E2AUE.png)