{"id":15362,"date":"2026-06-15T23:31:37","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T23:31:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=15362"},"modified":"2026-06-15T23:31:37","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T23:31:37","slug":"jurors-begin-deliberating-case-against-irvine-trainer-charged-in-deaths-of-11-dogs-in-his-care","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=15362","title":{"rendered":"Jurors begin deliberating case against Irvine trainer charged in deaths of 11 dogs in his care"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Jury deliberations began late Monday, June 15 in the trial of an Irvine dog trainer criminally charged with the deaths of nearly a dozen canines under his care, along with a woman accused of helping him try to cover up the demise of the canines.<\/p>\n

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The trainer, Kwong \u201cTony\u201d Sun Sit, is facing more than 20 felony animal cruelty and abuse charges, among other criminal counts, while the woman he worked and lived with, Tingfeng Liu, is accused of being an accessory after the fact.<\/p>\n

Suspicious pet owners helped officers prevent the cremation of most of the dogs. The case drew widespread news coverage, as emotional families faced the loss of their cherished pets.<\/p>\n

Sit ran Happy K9 Academy largely out of a park near his Irvine apartment, where he would train dogs that owners turned over to him for several weeks at a time. Sit posted countless videos of his training interactions with dogs on his social media accounts and, according to attorneys, charged owners around $900 to $1,000 a week.<\/p>\n

One dog, Shadow, died in Sit\u2019s care on June 12, 2025, while 10 others \u2014 Ziggy, Miko, Rosie, Theo, Puffin, Cody, Zoe, Luna, Bang Bang and Saint \u2014 apparently died on June 18.<\/p>\n

The exact details of the dogs\u2019 deaths remain unclear, even after two weeks of testimony in a Santa Ana courtroom.<\/p>\n

But evidence showed that Sit and Liu reached out to four different pet crematoriums across Southern California after the dogs died, and split up to drop the bodies of the dogs off. Their owners, meanwhile, were all sent to texts claiming their dog had unexpectedly, but peacefully, passed away overnight, that Sit was saddened by their loss and would give them refunds and that the dogs had been cremated.<\/p>\n

Some of the owners called police. An officer spoke to Sit at his apartment and saw his van was full of dog carriers and smelled of bleach.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Investigators intercepted the bodies of nine of the dogs before they were cremated. Eight were found to have died of heat stroke. Another died from blunt force trauma. Prosecutors previously told jurors that some of the dogs had blood on their faces, fur or paws.<\/p>\n

During closing arguments on Monday, Deputy District Attorney Michael Chay told jurors that the dogs died after being left in carriers within in an enclosed van.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe van was their death bed,\u201d the prosecutor said. \u201cThis dog trainer \u2014 experienced dog trainer \u2014 and the person who helped them get rid of the bodies betrayed the trust of all 11 families.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sit\u2019s attorney, Kate Corrigan, countered that \u201cNone of us know, based on the evidence, what happened\u2026<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThe van was a death bed?\u201d Corrigan asked. \u201cThere is no evidence to tell you that any of those dogs died in that van.\u201d<\/p>\n

Liu \u2014 who was 23 at the time \u2014 was in the country on a visa and had sought out Sit \u2014 who was 53 \u2014 to learn about his dog training techniques, according to the defense.<\/p>\n

Liu\u2019s attorney, Frederick Fascenelli, argued that his client wasn\u2019t aware that anything illegal was happening, a requirement for being an accessory after the fact. Liu, the attorney argued, was only doing what Sit told her to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are in a country that is not your own, with a language you do not speak,\u201d Facenelli told jurors about Liu\u2019s experience. \u201cYou have a girl who just finished her semester at school and is now working a summer job.\u201d<\/p>\n

The prosecution countered that Liu was aware of what was going on.<\/p>\n

\u201cMs. Liu doesn\u2019t just get to put her head in the sand and say \u2018I was just doing what I was asked,\u2019\u201d Chay said during his rebuttal argument.<\/p>\n

Jurors began their deliberations in the case shortly before the courtroom closed for the day. They are scheduled to return to resume deliberations on Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n

Read more Challenger with same name as US Sen. Dan Sullivan is ineligible for Alaska ballot, official says<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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