Xmas pups cash funds crime gangs

Dodgy dog trade fronting drug ops

- BY JOHN-PAUL CLARK

PEOPLE who buy designer puppies from illegal breeders as Christmas presents are helping to fund serious organised crime gangs.

Thousands of pounds are channelled into Scotland's criminal underworld every year through sales from rogue puppy farms on social media, with some pooches fetching as much as £3000.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) has urged anyone tempted to buy a puppy to only use legitimate breeders.

Meanwhile, The Scottish SPCA revealed it had received 2143 calls in the last five years over suspected puppy farms and breeding.