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Cockfighting ring bust in Sonoma Co. nets 835 roosters
More than 800 roosters were seized by Sonoma County Sheriffs deputies this week as part of a monthslong investigation in to a suspected cockfighting operation in Santa Rosa.
SONOMA COUNTY, Calif. - One of the Bay Area's largest cockfighting busts ever took place this week in Sonoma County, not far from downtown Santa Rosa.
Animal Cruelty charges
What we know:
A meticulous six-month investigation led the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office to seize an enormous number of supposed farm animals and arrest 30-year-old Saul Villalobos-Delacruz, age 30, of Santa Rosa, on animal cruelty felonies.
"Eight-hundred and thirty-three roosters. I've been in law enforcement for almost 25 years. This is one of the biggest that I've ever come across," said Sgt. Juan Valencia of the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department.
Animals euthanized
Experts say the animals seized are a lost cause. "You can't un-train them. They are aggressive and all 833 had to be euthanized," said Sgt. Valencia.
Cassie King of Direct Action Everywhere fights against so-called factory farms that she charges mistreat animals raised for food. To her group, cockfighting is pure savagery.
"Cockfighting is illegal in all 50 states in the United States but, sadly, it does still continue, and it's absolutely heartbreaking because anyone who has spent any time with chickens knows that they are loving, social beings, and they don't want to hurt each other," said King.
Items seized
Also seized by deputies – slashers, the knives attached to fighting cocks to wound or kill their opponents, as well as drugs used to treat wounded roosters, a lot of cash and four handguns. It takes a lot of space to raise and train fighting roosters, but out here, on Stony Point Road, there's plenty of that space available, much of it fronted by houses and barns.
It’s also big money.
"People will pay five to ten thousand per rooster. They're bred for fighting. People will pay top dollar. A lot of money laundering. So you have a lot of people washing money through these cockfights. This is organized crime," said Sgt. Valencia.
This seizure is sure to lead not only to other perpetrators, but to those who illegally bet on this wholesale butchery.
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