The DIY vet kit used by 'Dr Death' dog fighting gang: Police discover do-it-yourself 'Dog Repair' guide in ringleader's home along with stash of skin staplers, IVs, bandages and painkillers

By ELIZABETH HAIGH 15:26 04 Jun 2024, updated 15:29 04 Jun 2024

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An evil and 'callous' dog fighting gang was caught after police found a trove of evidence at ringleader Dr Death's house that included a 'Dog Repair' guide and DIY vet kit.

The grim discoveries were made during a raid by police amid an investigation into Phillip Ali - aka Dr Death - and were proof of the gang's attempts to avoid detection by refusing to take the dogs in their care to a vet.

Four members of the gang were jailed for a total of more than 11 years on Monday after years of illegal dog fights which left countless animals, dead or with horrific injuries including broken legs and gaping wounds.

Banned pitbulls and other bull breeds were subjected to brutal training regimes including running on treadmills, being beefed up with steroids, and surviving on starvation diets to reach fight weight before being entered into bouts, often to the death.

After a fight the dogs, which were often critically injured, would be treated by one of the gang members with a makeshift medical kit and advice taken from a paperback called 'The Dog Repair Kit'.

Ali, 67, of Chigwell, Essex, was jailed for five years after he was convicted following a trial of ten offences under the Animal Welfare Act.

Right-hand man Stephen Brown, 57, also of Chigwell, who was responsible for providing rudimentary health care for the injured dogs and was also involved in their training and arranging fights, received 30 months for five offences.

Attacking the gang's 'shocking level of barbarism and callousness', Judge Sawyer told them: 'Dogs were treated as a commodity by each of you. They were playing pieces in your game.'

The gang secretly arranged bloody fights with prize pots of up to £5,000 in England, Ireland and France by contacting each other on encrypted messaging app Signal, Chelmsford Crown Court heard.

They were caught after the RSPCA received a report of concern about an animal's welfare at the home of Philip Ali, who had previously received a 15-year jail term for attempted murder and was nicknamed Dr Death in the fight world.

An inspector who visited the property in August 2021 saw a treadmill, as well as scars on dogs' faces, leading to an investigation by its Special Operations Unit.

After gathering evidence, Metropolitan Police officers raided Ali's home, where they found a vet kit containing steroids, antibiotics, an UV kit for fluids and skin staplers.

There were also break sticks, which are used to separate fighting dogs, and flirt poles, which have rope attached and are used for training.

Two dogs were also taken into the care of the RSPCA.

Ali's mobile phone proved to be a 'gold mine' of information with travel plans, photos and videos of dogs, and stomach-churning match reports. It also led police to his three co-defendants.

In one of his match reports, he could be heard saying: 'Bonnie now getting tired. Loss of blood and one of her front legs has been broken… possibly both and then she starts to lay down and it's going one way.'

The reports show the fights could sometimes go on for as long as 90 minutes.

Fellow gang member personal trainer Billy Leadley, 38, was convicted of 12 offences and was jailed for four years.

The father-of-two had a dog fighting pit at his home and narrated a 'horrific' 58-minute match report for one bout which he refereed and in which one of the animals broke both legs.

Leadley's wife, Amy, 39, was not directly involved in the ring but was sentenced for offences involving keeping a premises for dog fighting and not caring for the animals properly.

The hairdresser received an 18-month community order, 200 hours of unpaid work and 25 days' rehabilitation activity after Judge Jamie Sawyer noted 'somebody has to look after the children'.

The Leadley's social media accounts portray them as perfect parents as they laugh and play with their children.

Other photos show members of the sick group grinning and enjoying a celebratory alcohol-fuelled meal in Bordeaux after winning an 'international show' in November 2021.

Officers found 16 dogs at the Leadleys' home in Takeley, Essex, including a large number of bull breeds thought to have been used for fighting.

A 12ft by 8ft dog fighting pit spattered with blood was located in the garage. Forensic tests on ten blood samples showed they came from at least five different dogs.

Ali and his son Matthew were given 15-year jail terms for the attempted murder of Richard Cabby, who was dragged from a van and beaten in the street before being stabbed 17 times on Christmas Day 2005.

The mother of his two children had married Matthew earlier that year and she had tried to stop Mr Cabby and his parents having access to the boy and girl.

Chief inspector Ian Muttitt of the RSPCA said after the sentencing: 'The individuals involved in this case were at the top level of dog fighting.

'They caused a huge amount of suffering over a prolonged period of time.'

PC Kerry Rowson, of Essex Police, said: 'The brutal crimes… were cruel, calculated and entirely for their own profit.'

Pitting animals against each other in combat, including dog fighting, cockfighting, bear baiting and badger baiting, has been outlawed in the UK since 1835.

All four defendants have been banned from keeping dogs for 10 years.

RSPCA chief inspector Ian Briggs - who led the investigation into the gang known as Operation Ghoul, said: 'Dog fighting is a barbaric and horrific blood sport which has been illegal in this country for almost 190 years; yet there is a secretive and clandestine underworld where it continues to happen today.

'It has become a hobby, passion and source of entertainment for the people involved, but the reality is that the dogs involved suffer unimaginable pain, suffering, fear and distress.

'This gang dedicated their lives to breeding, preparing and training what they believed were champion fighting dogs.

'They enjoyed the build-up to a fight and the excitement of the bloody brawls, as well as trying to patch their injured and dying dogs back together after the event.

'Sadly, some of the dogs in this case suffered severe injuries and were never found but a mobile phone recovered as part of the investigation included match reports that detailed awful and fatal injuries suffered by some of the dogs involved.'

The League Against Cruel Sports, a charity dedicated to stopping animals taking part in sports such as dog fighting, worked with the authorities to catch the gang.

Emma Judd, the charity's head of campaigns, said: 'Most people in this country would be horrified that such a cruel sport could be taking place in their neighbourhoods, and we urge anyone who is even slightly suspicious of similar activities happening where they live to get in touch with us.

'We promise we will investigate and we will work with the authorities to bring people to justice.

'We welcome the courts using the new sentencing powers which reflect the severity of the offences, and which the League was instrumental in lobbying government for.'

The RSPCA launched an investigation into dog fighting in the Essex and London areas after one of the charity's officers visited Ali's address, in Chigwell, Essex, in August 2021.

Concerns were raised after the officer saw treadmills and scarring on the dogs' faces and reported his concerns to his colleagues in the RSPCA's Special Operations Unit - a taskforce which investigates serious and organised animal crime, including dog fighting.

When Ali's home was raided on March 14, 2022, two dogs were seized by the Metropolitan Police and placed into RSPCA care, while dog-fighting paraphernalia, including a slat mill, two treadmills, four break sticks and two flirt poles, were recovered.

A DIY vet kit containing items such as skin staplers, an IV kit, bandages, needles, steroids, antibiotics and painkillers were also found, while a seized mobile phone showed Ali had recorded hours of WhatsApp voice notes describing planning for fights.

Deleted videos on the phone showed graphic dog fights and injuries, while the phone also revealed match reports following organised fights, information relating to travel plans for fights, as well as messages planning fights, talking about training regimes, and discussing injuries dogs had suffered.

The investigation led to warrants being executed at other addresses, including that of Billy and Amy Leadley, aged 38 and 39, in Bambers Green, Takeley, Essex, and Stephen Brown, 56, of Burrow Road, Chigwell, and at a third address in Merseyside.

Sixteen dogs were seized from the Leadleys' address, including bull breeds thought to have been used for fighting, many being kept in poor conditions in a garage, plus two smaller breeds who were removed on welfare grounds from the house.

One dog was seized from the property in Merseyside.

A slat mill, vet kit and books about dog fighting were all recovered from Brown's address, while a flirt pole, two slat mills, weighted collars and other weight training equipment, plus four break sticks, were seized from the Leadleys' property, which also had a dog fighting pit.

A total of 19 dogs were seized by police and taken into the RSPCA's care as part of Operation Ghoul.

RSPCA Behaviour and Welfare Specialist Claire said: 'A lot of these dogs were nervous and shut down when they arrived in our care and many had extensive scarring on their muzzles, heads, chests and front legs; something we see in dogs who have been involved in organised fighting.

'The dogs were being kept in poor conditions, with little interaction with the outside world, except for when they were taken to fight another dog in bloody bouts that often ended in serious and fatal injuries.

'They had never experienced what it's like to curl up on a sofa and feel safe, or the fun of running through grassy fields or chasing after a football.

'But now they're getting the love and care that they deserve and have really blossomed and come out of their shells.'

One of the dogs, eight-year-old bull breed Jane - who was removed from one of the pens in the garage at the Leadleys' home - has been settling into a loving foster home.

Her fosterer Debbie, who now plans to adopt her, said: 'Jane is doing brilliantly and has settled in so well. Her behaviour is fantastic and she loves to go out for walks, and have a good sniff. She just wants to enjoy life and is really chilled.

'She's really chilled out and enjoys snoozing in the sun until she gets too hot, and then she moves into the shade.

'She can be fussy about eating so I've been roasting her chicken and cooking her steak, and she's slowly building up a good appetite. She's certainly very spoiled!'

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