Mount Dora man with more than 30 roosters accused of training the birds for fights, police say

APOPKA, Fla. — A Mount Dora man is facing charges after a 16-month investigation into an operation that trained roosters for fights, according to Apopka police.

Raul Velez-Martinez, 60, was arrested by officers and is facing felony charges that can carry a penalty of up to five years in prison.

The case began Valentine’s Day of 2018, when Apopka police said they found him on a property where they say more than 30 roosters were being prepped for cock fighting and found blood near a ring.

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A report shows Velez-Martinez said he was the "caretaker of the chickens,” and told officers he would feed them and give them water and medicine.

According to the report, the owner of the chickens told police on camera that he, "does not fight roosters in Florida." Instead he would "prep and take them to Alabama to fight and sell."

That man was named along with Velez-Martinez in the official charges filed 14 months ago by the State Attorney's Office.

The description is reminiscent of a January 2017 raid of a different Apopka property where 230 chickens were seized.

"We think they were actually shipping the birds somewhere else,” said Apopka police Chief Mike McKinley. “We don't believe that they were actually doing the cockfighting here on premises.”

Police reported the roosters had shaved chests and cut "combs," the red skin on the head and wattels, the fleshy red skin under the neck.

In Florida, animal fighting is illegal, and it's also illegal to train them to fight.

Investigators said the 39 roosters and hens that were found on the property had to be euthanized.

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