CrimeStoppers Now Accepting Anonymous Tips About Animal Cruelty

DETROIT (WWJ) - People can now make an anonymous tip about animal abuse and neglect thanks new partnership between the Michigan Humane Society and Crime Stoppers of Michigan.

MHS President and CEO Matt Pepper says animal cruelty is just like any other form of violence, and it's important that we address it as such.

"There's just countless case studies of animal cruelty being directly related to these horrific... you know, you talk about serial killers and psychopaths and sociopaths, and people who have done horrific things," Pepper said.

"But it's also, unfortunately, directly correlated to forms of violence that we see more commonly: Domestic violence, gang activity, you think of dog fighting and cock-fighting and those types of activities."

Pepper said they respond to about 8,000 calls a year about animal abuse. That includes the recent, shocking case of Baron, a maimed Rottweiler, which he calls "the worst case he's ever seen."

"Anyone who looks at Baron can see that someone capable of doing that is capable of doing that to a person," Pepper told WWJ's Zahra Huber.

"...Be our eyes and be their voice, and that's what people can do to step up and continue to recognize it as a bigger part of the overall picture of public safety in our communities."

You can make an anonymous tip at 1-800-SPEAK UP. As always, when dealing with Crime Stoppers, you will never be asked for your name, your call with not be traced or recorded and you will not be required to go to court or to make a statement to police.