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Charges expected after cockfighting operation found
By Joe Gorman
YOUNGSTOWN
45 roosters seized in cockfighting raid
Gallery
Search warrant at East Side home leads to 2 arrests.
Preliminary exams show several of the roosters seized Thursday during a search warrant at an East Side home investigating cockfighting had injuries from fighting.
Mary Armstrong Louk of Animal Charity also said Friday that animal-cruelty charges are expected next week against the two men arrested Thursday at the home in the 2100 block of Ives Avenue
The two men, Rogelio Ives, 28, who lists the home as his address, and Luis Rodriguez, 30, of Youngstown, were arraigned in municipal court Friday on drug charges and remain in the Mahoning County jail.
Officers and humane agents found 45 roosters when they served a search warrant at the home about 3:30 p.m. Thursday, almost all of them in a heated garage in the back.
Several signs of cockfighting were found, including razors that are attached to the shaved legs of the roosters, steroids to increase their aggressiveness, bandages, medicine to stop bleeding and even a trophy.
Inside the home, members of the vice squad and Community Police Unit found an ounce of suspected heroin, which is worth about $1,400, and a bag of suspected cocaine was found in the pocket of Rodriguez when he was searched.
The birds are being held at the Happy Trails Farm Animal Sanctuary in Ravenna.
Cockfighting is a misdemeanor crime that carries a maximum fine of $250 and 30 days in jail. Ohio lawmakers, however, have proposed a bill to make it a felony.
Louk said the birds were underfed and also did not have enough water. She said she did not know why they were being denied food if they were being kept to fight.
Police Detective Sgt. Pat Kelly, who heads up the Community Police Unit, said the raid was the third time since his unit was formed it has found evidence of cockfighting. The two previous ones were on the South and East sides, Kelly said.
The home on Ives has been suspected of having cockfights for at least the past six months, Kelly said. At times, the fights, which took place on Sundays, would attract so much traffic the street was shut down because no traffic could get through, Kelly said.
Thursday’s warrant came after an anonymous letter was sent to both The Vindicator and Animal Charity saying a shipment of roosters was delivered to the home. The Vindicator turned the letter it received over to police, who said it helped with their efforts to get a search warrant.
Kelly has run the CPU for about 18 months and said up until that time, he had never seen a cockfighting operation before. Now, he has seen three in 18 months.
Humane agents also removed two dogs from the home, one a smaller dog that was found in the basement and the other a larger dog that was outside shivering in the cold. Louk said both dogs were underfed and filthy. The dogs are at Animal Charity offices in Boardman.
Two dead roosters were also found inside the garage. Louk said they are not sure how they died. They are contacting a veterinarian who has experience examining roosters to see if they can determine a cause of death.