PASCO COUNTY, Fla. -- A Pasco County man is facing five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine after pleading guilty to dogfighting. 

  • Tyler McGovern faces 5 years in prison for dogfighting
  • Triangle Gang sponsored pit bull fighting, officials say
  • Dogfights took place in Duval, Sumter, Marion counties

According to the plea agreement, Tyler McGovern, 32, participated with others in a dogfighting conspiracy. 

Officials said McGovern and his co-conspirators, operating as Triangle Gang, sponsored pit bulls in dogfights in Duval, Sumter, and Marion counties. 

On March 1, 2017, officers executed a search warrant in Sumter County at a home belonging to a Triangle Gang member and seized eight pit bulls, along with equipment and supplements used to condition the dogs for fighting. 

The federal Animal Welfare Act makes it a felony to knowingly sell, buy, possess, train, transport, deliver, or receive any animal, including dogs, for purposes of having the animal participate in an animal fighting venture.