Gambling Raid Busts Texas Cockfighting Ring

Gambling News - January 4th, 2010 - Written By Glen

The new year has already been ringing with illegal gambling busts, but one has proven to be more heinous than the rest. Just outside of Fort Worth, Texas, a cockfighting raid had yielded almost 170 different arrests.

As a product of the raid, 114 roosters were liberated from their unscrupulous captors. Money, drugs, and the corpses of roosters were also recovered. Some lucky cocks had found solace from the raiders, as they have been freed and will likely face veterinarian assistance. The site had been under investigation for two weeks prior to the bust.

The main charges included gambling offenses, though the possibility of organized crime has, according to the Associated Press, been suggested. Additionally, roughly a dozen children were taken in by Child Protective Services during the raid. These children ranged from seven to fifteen years of age.

Illegal gambling busts had been a highlight of 2009, including many illegal sports betting operations, many of which were backed by organized crime. Online Gambling had also taken a hit, as the federal authorities have been cracking down on these online gambling services under the pretext of the UIGEA and, more commonly, the Wire Act.

Cockfighting, one of the more lucrative forms of illegal gambling, is amongst one of the most heinous of all forms of cruelty. It is not uncommon for many of these cocks to be injected with steroids or other such supplements in order to remain strong.

The Associated Press Contributed to this Article.