Cockfighting - 15 birds seized
Latimer, MS (US)Incident Date: Saturday, Jul 14, 2007
County: Jackson
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Moises Barron Torres
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
Fifteen roosters are safe and in a Mississippi animal shelter after a cockfighting ring is busted in the Jackson County, Miss. town of Latimer.
Investigators said 38-year-old Barron Torres raised roosters in his home to fight. An anonymous call tipped police off to the cockfighting and investigators found evidence of a recent fight at the house. All of the roosters' red combs had been cut off their bodies. Also cut off were the back part of their claws called the spur. Investigators said Torres replaced the birds' natural spur with sharp hooks.
"When they fight, they do it with their claws and they'll peck, too," Bill Richman said. "But with the knife there, that's the way that they can do the most injury to the bird that they're fighting."
Torres is not an American citizen, but investigators said they aren't sure if he is here legally or not.
Case UpdatesBy Friday morning chickens wandered around all that was left of what the Jackson County Sheriff's Department describes as an elaborate cock fighting ring. Two days before, an anonymous tip led deputies to a house on Martin Avenue.
"Some of them you could tell had recently been fought. They had some recent injuries. They were still bleeding and there was some paraphernalia out in plain view," Lt. Ken McClenic said.
Investigators say inside the house they found homemade spurs, instructional manuals, syringes as well as medications and vitamins for the animals. Deputies say they also found this fake Texas drivers license belonging to Moises Barron Torres. He is the man now charged with one count of cockfighting.
McClenic said, "One of the Hispanic males admitted that he raised the chickens and trained them for fighting. He denied fighting them here in the United States. He says he trained them to transport back into Mexico to fight there where it is legal."
Lt. McClenic says the department took the injured and scarred game cocks they could tell had been used as fighters to the Jackson County Animal Shelter. He says the rest were left at Torres' home because the shelter couldn't handle them all. The Lieutenant says what some people consider a harmless sport is actually animal cruelty.
Lt. Ken McClenic said, "I can't describe the feeling you have when you see that. Just knowing that an animal was trained to kill another animal."
Jackson County investigators say cock fighting is a misdemeanor. Dog fighting, however, is a felony.
Lt. McClenic says at first a hold was placed on Moises Barron Torres to determine whether he was in the country legally.
The investigator says after two days of not hearing back from U.S. Customs, the department allowed the Mexican immigrant to bond out. | Source: WLOX - July 14, 2007
Update posted on Jul 16, 2007 - 9:02PM |
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