Two executives with The Humane Society of Missouri will be honored at this year's ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) awards luncheon.
Tim Rickey, the Director of the Animal Cruelty Task Force and Kyle Held, an Animal Cruelty Investigator are set to receive the Law Enforcement Officer of the Year Award. They are two of ten people and animals who will be honored at the ASPCA Humane Awards Luncheon on October 29th in New York City.
“The Humane Awards is an opportunity for the ASPCA to recognize the unique and often heroic contributions that are made on behalf of animals each and every day,” said ASPCA President & CEO Ed Sayres. “Tim Ricky’s life-long passion to end dogfighting, and Kyle Held’s extraordinary investigative techniques, led to the largest dogfighting raid in US history in July 2009. Over 400 dogs were saved and 26 criminals arrested.”
The ASPCA, Missouri State Highway Patrol, United States Department of Agriculture’s Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, The U.S. Marshals Service, and the United States Attorney collaborated in the rescue, veterinary care, and forensics evidence collection of dogs associated with multiple suspected dogfighting operations that spanned eight states.
Mr. Rickey and Mr. Held spent over a year investigating and documenting the brutal dogfighting rings. Mr. Rickey then assembled teams of animal handlers and forensic investigators to raid 28 suspected dogfighting locations. “Mr. Ricky and Mr. Held’s outstanding leadership saved the lives of countless animals, and the ASPCA is pleased to recognize them as Law Enforcement Officers of the Year,” added Sayres.
