Celebrity Dog Broker Allegedly Ran Puppy Laundering Scheme Selling Breeder Dogs As Rescues

The California dog rescue operation where Ellen DeGeneres, Jennifer Aniston, Chrissy Teigen, Kris Jenner and other Hollywood stars got their furry friends ran a puppy laundering scheme where they sold dogs from puppy mills under the guise that they were rescues ... at least according to city officials.

According to a new legal complaint, obtained by TMZ, Wagmor and its founder Melissa Bacelar are being dragged to court over allegations that the dog rescue bought hundreds of pooches from commercial breeders and sold them in California as rescues who needed to be adopted.

In the civil enforcement action, the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office alleges Wagmor's customers shelled out $650 to $1,500 in "adoption fees" for the pups ... but instead of actually rescuing dogs in need, the unsuspecting customers were directly financing Wagmor's commercial breeding operation. The officials are looking to block the business from operating in this way and hit Wagmor with millions of dollars in civil penalties over the alleged practices.

What's more, the City Attorney claims Bacelar used deception to solicit public donations ... they say she manufactured urgency and would tell people "breeders will kill dogs, including by shooting them" unless Wagmor raised sufficient funds fast.

According to the docs, Wagmor bought the dogs from breeders all over the country ... and told donors their contributions were tax-deductible even after the IRS and California Franchise Tax Board revoked their tax-exempt status.

It appears Jennifer, Ellen, Chrissy and Kris seemingly thought they were getting rescues from Wagmor ... they made social media posts showing off their dogs and announced they were adopting "rescued" pooches.