Riaz and Gladys Hussain knew the Bartholomew Avenue building they purchased via Hartford city tax auction in 2017 had issues before they placed the winning $210,000 bid.
What they found inside was still a shock.
There were dead dogs – thought to be victims of dog fights – outside the former Hanson-Whitney factory at 169 Bartholomew Ave. Dog pens were inside.
They also found a cock-fighting ring, mountains of construction debris and trash, and even an illicit marijuana grow room in the basement of the heavily-blighted, 90,000-square-foot building.