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by ERIN PARROTT
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The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) has charged four Sumter County men in connection with a dogfighting investigation that resulted in the rescue of 19 dogs.
Andrew Jeffrey Bryant Jr., 39; Tevin V. Joyner, 32; Orlando Raynell Coullette, 49; and Robert Brandon Hansley, 44, were arrested on September 17, 2026, according to SLED.
Bryant, Joyner and Coullette were each charged with criminal conspiracy, four counts of animal fighting or baiting and four counts of ill treatment of animals. Hansley faces those same charges in addition to one count of presence at a facility of animal fighting or baiting – first offense.
According to arrest warrants included with SLED’s release, investigators allege the men were connected to dogfighting activity uncovered during a law enforcement operation earlier this month.
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The warrants allege officers encountered multiple people gathered around a pit watching two dogs engaged in a fight. Investigators also alleged the dogs were unable to escape and that those gathered around the pit were involved in or facilitating the fight.
Authorities ultimately rescued 19 dogs as part of the investigation, according to SLED.
The Sumter County case is the latest in a string of significant dogfighting investigations across the Palmetto State.
Earlier this month, a federal grand jury indicted seven Chesterfield County men – including a former sheriff’s deputy – in connection with an alleged dogfighting operation prosecutors say stretched from September 2019 through July 2026.
As FITSNews previously reported, more than 100 dogs were seized from properties connected to those defendants between April and July. Investigators also allegedly recovered equipment commonly associated with dogfighting, including treadmills, bite sticks, weighted collars, heavy chains and breeding stands.
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RELATED | SEVEN INDICTED IN DOGFIGHTING OPERATION
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That investigation itself grew out of an earlier Chesterfield County operation in which 34 dogs were rescued from two properties. Several of those animals reportedly showed scarring consistent with fighting.
Law enforcement officials have previously warned that dogfighting investigations can extend well beyond allegations of animal cruelty, potentially intersecting with illegal gambling, narcotics and firearms offenses.
In the latest case, Bryant, Joyner, Coullette and Hansley were booked into the Alvin S. Glenn detention center in Richland County. The Sumter County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) and Sumter Police Department (SPD) assisted SLED with the arrests.
The case will be prosecuted by the S.C. fifth circuit solicitor’s office.
As with all criminal cases, the charges against the four men are allegations, and they are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
FITSNews will continue tracking South Carolina law enforcement’s ongoing investigations into organized dogfighting and animal cruelty across the Palmetto State.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Erin Parrott is a Greenville, S.C. native who graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2025 with a bachelor degree in broadcast journalism. Got feedback or a tip for Erin? Email her here.
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