--- title: McGruff the Crime Dog Jailed for 16 Years for Drugs and Weapons description: Judge: "Everything I read about you makes you seem like a scary person." canonical: https://time.com/5234/mcgruff-the-crime-dog-actor-jailed-for-pot-grenade-launchers/ author: Laura Stampler article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-02-06T16:45:04.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:07:03.071Z og:title: McGruff the Crime Dog Jailed for 16 Years for Drugs and Weapons og:description: Judge: "Everything I read about you makes you seem like a scary person." og:url: https://time.com/5234/mcgruff-the-crime-dog-actor-jailed-for-pot-grenade-launchers/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdb7ca1f930c4b36e/6986820635ba6f44e4c00924/mcgruff-the-crime-dog.jpg?branch=production&width=969&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 969 og:image:height: 545 og:image:alt: McGruff the Crime Dog throws out the first pitch before the Toronto Blue Jays game against the Texas Rangers at The Ballpark in Arlington on August 4, 1998 in Arlington, Texas. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: McGruff the Crime Dog Jailed for 16 Years for Drugs and Weapons twitter:description: Judge: "Everything I read about you makes you seem like a scary person." twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdb7ca1f930c4b36e/6986820635ba6f44e4c00924/mcgruff-the-crime-dog.jpg?branch=production&width=969&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # McGruff the Crime Dog Actor Jailed for Pot, Grenade Launchers > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=62249def-968d-4f7f-9163-1fd348c0a67f&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Feb 6, 2014 4:45 PM UTC  McGruff the Crime Dog throws out the first pitch before the Toronto Blue Jays game against the Texas Rangers at The Ballpark in Arlington on August 4, 1998 in Arlington, Texas. McGruff the Crime Dog throws out the first pitch before the Toronto Blue Jays game against the Texas Rangers at The Ballpark in Arlington on August 4, 1998 in Arlington, Texas. Stephen Dunn—Getty Images by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Feb 6, 2014 4:45 PM UTC A man who used to play McGruff the Crime Dog didn’t “Take a bite out of crime,” [crime took a bite out of him.](http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Pot-farm-diagrams-lead-former-McGruff-back-to-5201625.php) John R. Morales was arrested in 2011 in Galveston, TX after a [drug-sniffing dog (narc!) detected pot](http://newsfixnow.com/2014/02/04/mcgruff-the-crime-dog-sentenced-to-16-years-for-drugs/) when he was pulled over for speeding. Police then found diagrams of two indoor pot-growing operations and a plethora of marijuana seeds. When police raided his house, they seized 1,000 marijuana plants and 9,000 rounds of ammunition for an assortment of 27 weapons — including a grenade launcher, because McGruff must have lots of enemies. After three years, Morales, 41, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 16 years in jail Monday. Even though Morales said he was nonviolent, U.S. District Judge Vanessa Gilmore said, “Everything I read about you makes you seem like a scary person.” We leave Morales with this clip of McGruff for further reflection. 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