Boxing champion Tyrone Spong has been charged with 23 violations of Florida’s Fish and Wildlife statues after a pet cougar escaped.
The 60lb cat alarmed residents of Parkland, FL, when it appeared in a residential area in January of this year. It was successfully captured by wildlife officers, who took it to a wildlife facility where it was determined to be underweight. The cougar made a full recovery and is now being housed in a licensed facility.
An investigation traced the cat to Spong, the current WBC Latino Heavyweight Champion and WBO Latino Heavyweight Champion, and former WFCA Cruiserweight champion, Glory 95kg Slam Champion and It’s Showtime 95MAX World champion.
“Mr. Spong kept an extremely dangerous class 1 cougar which ultimately escaped and was loose in a residential neighborhood during daylight hours while school was not in session during New Year’s Day 2019 resulting in threats to the public safety,” states a report released this week by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Spong has been charged with unlawfully possessing the animal, failing to house it adequately, and failing to report the animal’s escape. He was also charged with a violation for failing to provide clean drinking water for Macaw birds. Each of the charges carries a maximum penalty of a $500 fine and up to 60 days in jail.
This isn’t the first time Spong has been in trouble with the law because of his pets. In 2016 he was cited for four counts of animal cruelty relating to providing improper shelter to four dogs.
