An Orange County dog trainer has been sentenced to 11 years and 10 months in state prison for leaving 11 dogs to die from heatstroke in a sweltering van. Kwong “Tony” Chun Sit, 54, of Irvine, was convicted by a jury of animal cruelty and destroying evidence weeks before his sentencing.
His live-in girlfriend, Tingfeng Liu, 24, who was in the U.S. on a student visa, was sentenced to three years in prison for assisting in the cover-up of the crime. Prosecutors stated the couple attempted to conceal the deaths by impersonating the dogs' owners and dropping the animals' bodies at different crematoriums to avoid suspicion.
The scheme came to light when a pet owner contacted Irvine police after receiving a text message indicating their dog had died. Investigators subsequently searched Sit's home, discovering a van filled with dog crates that had a strong odor of bleach.
Necropsies revealed that eight of the dogs died from heatstroke, and one died from blunt-force trauma. The cause of death for two other dogs could not be determined as they had already been cremated. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office announced the sentencing, with District Attorney Todd Spitzer condemning the actions.
Sit, who reportedly earned approximately $20,000 per month operating Happy K9 Academy, apologized in court but maintained that the dogs did not die in the van. He was found guilty on 19 felony counts. Both Sit and Liu have been held on $550,000 bail since their arrests.