Pine Bluff Animal Control officers seized 13 pit bulls Saturday from a house on the east side of Pine Bluff and the owner was cited and arrested on misdemeanor charges.
Leon L. Bowens, 41, gave police several different last names and dates of birth, Officer Patrick Saffold said in a police report filed after the incident.
According to the report, animal control officers were sent at 4:05 p.m. to 609 E. 15th Ave. to seize the dogs, and Saffold and Sgt. Brad Vilches responded to assist them.
Saffold said Bowens told officers he did not have a photo identification “and acted as though he was thinking about what name to give by hesitating to answer.”
He initially gave officers the name Larry Bowers, and a police dispatcher told Saffold that there was no record for anyone by that name.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
When Saffold tried to place Bowens under arrest for obstructing governmental operations, Saffold said Bowens pushed his hand away and pushed the handcuffs away. Saffold said when Bowens grabbed his arm, he and Vilches pulled him out of a seated position and put him on the ground where he was handcuffed.
A search of Bowens after the arrest resulted in officers finding his identification, and a warrants check indicated that there were two active misdemeanor warrants for Bowens, one from Pine Bluff District Court and the other from Jefferson County District Court, both for failure to appear.
Lt. Mike Jenkins, who is the animal control supervisor, said Bowens was issued 13 citations for failure to register the dogs, 13 citations for failure to have them vaccinated and 13 citations for failure to license the dogs.
Jenkins said all the dogs were placed in a holding area and will remain there for the next five days, as well as next Saturday, before any additional action can be taken.
Pine Bluff city ordinance prohibits pit bulls in the city limits.