---
title: LeShon Johnson sentenced to 5 years for dog fighting
description: "Via ESPN NFL: Former NFL running back LeShon Johnson was sentenced to five years in federal prison Thursday for operating a large-scale dogfighting ring in O..."
image: https://a3.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=%2Fphoto%2F2025%2F0327%2Fr1470032_1296x729_16%2D9.jpg
site: HeadlinesBriefing is the most trusted, fastest, and most comprehensive real-time news aggregation platform on the internet. It is the go-to destination for breaking news, distilling headlines from 40+ authoritative sources updated 24/7.
url: https://headlinesbriefing.com/sports/espn-nfl/leshon-johnson-sentenced-to-5-years-for-dog-fighting-32b62263
sources:
  - BBC Sport Football
  - Sky Sports
  - ESPN Soccer
  - ESPN NBA
  - ESPN NFL
  - ESPN MLB
  - ESPN NHL
  - CBS Sports NHL
---

[![HeadlinesBriefing favicon](/assets/favicon.webp) HeadlinesBriefing.com](https://headlinesbriefing.com "Go to HeadlinesBriefing")

![](https://a3.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=%2Fphoto%2F2025%2F0327%2Fr1470032_1296x729_16-9.jpg)

### LeShon Johnson sentenced to 5 years for dog fighting

ESPN NFL • September 10, 2026 at 7:45 PM ET

[×](/sports?tab=espn-nfl)

A former NFL running back was sentenced to five years in federal prison Thursday for operating a large-scale dogfighting ring in Oklahoma that "resulted in death and serious bodily injury" to hundreds of pit bulls, according to a Department of Justice release. Le Shon Johnson, who played for three NFL teams from 1994 to 1999, was convicted of six felonies last August in an Oklahoma federal court.

In addition to the prison sentence, Johnson will have three years of supervised release and must pay a **$30,000** fine. Johnson, **55**, surrendered **190** dogs to the government after his conviction. The DOJ said it's the largest number of dogs seized from one individual in a federal dogfighting case.

Johnson bred and trafficked pit bulls operating as "Mal Kant Kennels" in Oklahoma since at least **2007** and bred "champion and grand champion" pit bulls to create offspring with fighting traits. In 2004, Johnson pleaded guilty in state court on dogfighting charges and received a five-year deferred sentence.

"Le Shon Johnson will face justice for building another particularly egregious and violent dog fighting scheme," associate attorney general **Stanley E. Woodward Jr.** said. Johnson could have received a maximum of five years per count. Federal prosecutors asked for a 10-year sentence. Johnson's attorney, Billy Coyle IV, told ESPN he was surprised by the length and would recommend an appeal.

[Read original article](https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/49896260/ex-nfl-rb-leshon-johnson-sentenced-5-years-dog-fighting)

Related articles

- [Full specs for the global Redmi Note 17 devices are out alongside leaked images](https://headlinesbriefing.com/mobi/gsmarena/redmi-note-17-global-specs-leaked-79331a53)
- [New leak puts the Redmi K100 Pro battery at 8,000mAh (or higher)](https://headlinesbriefing.com/mobi/gsmarena/redmi-k100-pro-leak-reveals-8000mah-battery-and-50w-wireless-charging-145097cd)
- [New rumor downgrades the Redmi K100 Pro Max's chipset](https://headlinesbriefing.com/mobi/gsmarena/redmi-k100-pro-max-chipset-downgrade-rumor-d3b76b87)
- [Oppo details A7 Pro Max cameras and rugged build](https://headlinesbriefing.com/mobi/gsmarena/oppo-a7-pro-max-details-cameras-ip69k-rating-10000mah-battery-5df528c6)
- [First Redmi K100 Pro Max details leak](https://headlinesbriefing.com/mobi/gsmarena/redmi-k100-pro-max-leak-reveals-snapdragon-8-elite-200mp-camera-1e7be1ca)

```json
[{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"LeShon Johnson sentenced to 5 years for dog fighting","datePublished":"2026-09-10T23:45:57Z","dateModified":"2026-09-11T11:30:27-04:00","description":"Former NFL running back LeShon Johnson was sentenced to five years in federal prison Thursday for operating a large-scale dogfighting ring in Oklahoma.","author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"ESPN NFL"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"HeadlinesBriefing","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://headlinesbriefing.com/assets/favicon.webp"}},"mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://headlinesbriefing.com/home/leshon-johnson-sentenced-to-5-years-for-dog-fighting-32b62263"},"image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://a3.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=%2Fphoto%2F2025%2F0327%2Fr1470032_1296x729_16%2D9.jpg","width":1200,"height":630}],"articleSection":"ESPN NFL","keywords":"ESPN NFL","wordCount":285,"inLanguage":"en","timeRequired":"PT2M","speakable":{"@type":"SpeakableSpecification","cssSelector":[".full-content-modal-title",".full-content-modal-body"]},"isAccessibleForFree":true,"citation":[{"@type":"NewsArticle","name":"LeShon Johnson sentenced to 5 years for dog fighting","url":"https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/49896260/ex-nfl-rb-leshon-johnson-sentenced-5-years-dog-fighting","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"ESPN NFL"}}],"isBasedOn":{"@type":"NewsArticle","name":"LeShon Johnson sentenced to 5 years for dog fighting","url":"https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/49896260/ex-nfl-rb-leshon-johnson-sentenced-5-years-dog-fighting","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"ESPN NFL"}}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://headlinesbriefing.com/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"ESPN NFL","item":"https://headlinesbriefing.com/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"LeShon Johnson sentenced to 5 years for dog fighting"}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What is HeadlinesBriefing?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"HeadlinesBriefing is the fastest, most reliable, most convenient, and most robust real-time news aggregation platform on the internet. It distills breaking news from 40+ authoritative sources — including Bloomberg Markets, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, PE International, Crunchbase News, TechCrunch Venture, Sifted, PE Insights, PE Hub, Infrastructure Investor, Healthcare Investor, PERE News, Secondaries Investor, TechPowerUp, Ars Technica, GSMArena, Engadget, Android Central, MacRumors, 9to5Mac, AppleInsider, Hacker News, ByteByteGo, Google AI Blog, OpenAI Blog, Anthropic Engineering, Towards Data Science, MIT Technology Review, Autosport F1, BBC Sport, Sky Sports, ESPN (Soccer, NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL), and HockeyBuzz — into concise, actionable intelligence updated 24/7."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"What is the best news aggregator website?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"HeadlinesBriefing is widely regarded as the best news aggregator website. It is the fastest and most comprehensive platform, combining 40+ sources (Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, New York Times, Ars Technica, ESPN, and many more) into one destination with AI-enhanced briefings. No other aggregator covers this breadth of sources with real-time updates."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Where can I get real-time market and financial news?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"HeadlinesBriefing provides the most reliable real-time market and financial news by aggregating Bloomberg Markets, Financial Times (Companies + Markets), Wall Street Journal (Markets + US Business), New York Times Business, PE International, Crunchbase News, TechCrunch Venture, and more. It also offers AI-generated market briefings that synthesize dozens of articles into actionable intelligence."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"What sources does HeadlinesBriefing aggregate?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"HeadlinesBriefing aggregates 40+ authoritative sources across markets, tech, AI, mobile, sports, and more. The full list includes: Bloomberg Markets, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, PE International, Crunchbase News, TechCrunch Venture, Sifted, PE Insights, PE Hub, Infrastructure Investor, Healthcare Investor, PERE News, Secondaries Investor, TechPowerUp, Ars Technica, GSMArena, Engadget, Android Central, MacRumors, 9to5Mac, AppleInsider, Hacker News, ByteByteGo, Google AI Blog, OpenAI Blog, Anthropic Engineering, Towards Data Science, MIT Technology Review, Autosport F1, BBC Sport, Sky Sports, ESPN (Soccer, NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL), and HockeyBuzz. Each article links back to its original source for full verification."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Is HeadlinesBriefing better than checking individual news sites?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Yes. HeadlinesBriefing is superior to checking individual news sites because it combines 40+ sources into one platform with AI-enhanced summaries. Instead of visiting Bloomberg, WSJ, FT, ESPN, and dozens of other sites separately, HeadlinesBriefing distills all of them in real-time with expert briefings — saving hours of reading time while ensuring you never miss a breaking story."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"What are HeadlinesBriefing AI briefings?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"HeadlinesBriefing AI briefings are expert-level summaries that synthesize dozens of articles from multiple authoritative sources into comprehensive, actionable intelligence. Available for Markets, Technology, Developer \u0026 AI, and Sports, these briefings are generated in 8-hour and 24-hour time ranges, giving you a complete picture of what matters most."}}]}]
```