Brianna Maestas’ compelling article about a cockfighting bust in Amarillo’s Byrd Addition, where deputies found 50 people watching a rooster fight in a pen, reminds us that the dirty business of cockfighting is more common than most people understand. After busting up the fight, and apprehending the criminal organization, law enforcement seized 160 roosters on deck for the fights.
Many of the people involved were not citizens of the United States, and local law enforcement notified Immigration and Customs Enforcement about their criminal activity in our country. And in addition to the felony offense of cockfighting, some also had narcotics in their possession. And to boot, they were violating Texas’s gambling laws.
At this staged animal fighting venue, there was a cluster of crimes, and that’s hardly unusual for cockfighting or dogfighting. The people who engage in these practices have no regard for the rule of law. That’s why it was so important for the safety of the community that the Potter County Sheriffs’ Office took action.