HARQUAHALA VALLEY, AZ – Three people were arrested for their alleged involvement in a cockfighting ring in the West Valley, according to a Thursday report.
Lieutenant Brian Lee with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said that earlier this week, deputies received a call and responded to the scene of a suspected cockfighting ring in Harquahala Valley.
Lee said during a traffic stop near the same location, deputies located and arrested three blood-covered suspects who were found with several roosters, many of them dead.
Many of the roosters were also covered in blood showing signs of distress and were taken to the Estrella Equine Practice by the deputies where the remaining roosters were euthanized as a result of their degraded condition, according to Lee.
Eriberto Cuellar, 31-year-old Hector Rivera, and 19-year-old Jose Martinez were all booked into jail for animal cruelty and cock fighting charges.
The suspects reportedly admitted to deputies that they owned the roosters and held cockfights for profit.
Martinez and Rivera have also had immigration holds placed on them for being in the country illegally, according to Lee.
"My office will continue to crackdown on all forms of animal cruelty," said Sheriff Arpaio.
