HIALEAH, Fla. – Detectives following up on a fraud case in a Hialeah industrial area Thursday “stumbled upon” a cockfighting operation run out of an auto parts store, according to police.
The business’s owner, Juan Romero, 58, is now facing multiple criminal charges.
According to his arrest report, economic crimes detectives were working in the 4600 block of East 10th Lane when they “stumbled upon a large number of individual cages” placed in an alleyway.
They said they found several male chickens, commonly known as cocks, in the rear of the business, caged and showing signs of cockfighting. Some had feathers plucked from their legs, the report states.
A neighboring business owner allowed police to search the rear of his business, where detectives found more individually-caged cocks.
Additionally, detectives said they found red foam resembling a cock, commonly used as an agitator to train roosters for fighting.
While leaving the alley, detectives encountered Romero, the owner of A&M A/C Auto Parts Inc., located at 4630 E. 10th Lane.
Police said Romero confirmed he owned the cocks and allowed officers to search the business, where they found a cockfighting ring and additional roosters.
Romero made a statement to police prior to his arrest, which was redacted from the report.
Lt. Eddie Rodriguez, a Hialeah police spokesperson, confirmed that detectives discovered approximately 160 fighting roosters inside individual cages.
“(They) were being bred and trained to fight,” he said.
A person in the area, who asked to remain anonymous, said it was well-known among people living and working nearby that Romero was raising roosters, but he wasn’t known to have raised them for fighting.
“You can’t hide it. They are cock-a-doodle-doo-ing all day long,” that person said. “From what I understand is he was raising roosters in the alley behind the building, I don’t know of any fighting that was going on.”
“Welcome to Hialeah,” the person added.
Another person said, in Spanish, “I’ve never seen them fighting here.”
Jail records show Romero was arrested on charges of possessing animals to fight, illegal possession of animal fighting equipment and using a property for the use of animal fighting.
As of Friday, he was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center where his bond was set at $5,000.
He was also hit with an unsafe structure notice.