The National Police have arrested 19 men in Aspe (Alicante) for allegedly belonging to a criminal group dedicated to the organization of clandestine cockfights and for animal abuse. The operation, with arrests in a competition attended by about 150 people arriving from different parts of Spain and France, has allowed the dismantling of one of the “rings” or “cockpits” dedicated to these “most important” illegal acts in all of Spain.
According to the National Police, operation ‘Ring’ took place this Thursday at 3 p.m. when they broke into a leisure establishment open to the public located on the Alicante Highway in Aspe when the competition was taking place with numerous bets.
Fifty National Police agents have participated in the operation. The attendees have been identified, many of whom had traveled from all over Spain and some from France to attend this cockfight, considered one of the most important of the year and which had even been promoted in some profile of social networks.
Some of the attendees have told the agents that the seriously injured roosters are sacrificed and, along with those that die in the fight, they are discarded and hidden so that the police cannot find them. In any case, the agents have found traces of blood both in the arena and in trash cans in the rooster preparation area.
The nineteen arrested are charged with one crime of animal abuse and another of belonging to a criminal group, and among them is the person in charge of the premises, the main person under investigation and the ringleader of the activity. The total money seized from the detainees amounts to 26,000 euros.
The National Police has highlighted the high quality of both the arena and the stands, which could accommodate around 170 seated attendees, in addition to more people standing. At the entrance to the cockpit, which also had air conditioning and an electronic screen hanging from the ceiling in the center, the trophies of the three winners of the competition were displayed.
Some of the detainees will be placed at the disposal of the Investigating Court on guard duty in the next few hours. According to the National Police, with this operation one of the most important clandestine “cockpits or arenas” for illegal cockfighting has been dismantled and closed.
