30 Roosters Seized in Raid on Reseda Fighting Cock ‘Farm’

A breeding and training facility for fighting cocks in Reseda was closed down by Los Angeles police Thursday when officers raided the high-fenced, half-acre property and seized 30 roosters and made two arrests.

Using a search warrant, police raided the residential property in the 18800 block of Calvert Street at 10 a.m. and found cages containing fighting cocks lining a rear yard, along with tools and drugs used for training them to fight, said Sgt. George Thomas of the West Valley vice unit.

Officers arrested the property’s owner, Rudy Mendoza, 49, and Jose Ibarzabal, 45, who lives on the property. Thomas said the suspects, both Honduran nationals, will be charged with raising and possessing birds for fighting.

The charge is a misdemeanor, but Thomas said seizure of the fighting cocks, which were being held by the city’s Department of Animal Regulation, is more significant to the breeding and training operation.

“The charge is a misdemeanor but the loss of birds is what hurts,” he said. “Each bird is worth $300 to $1,000. Some are brought here from Florida for breeding. It’s a substantial loss.”

Thomas said vice officers had been conducting a surveillance of Mendoza’s property and attempting to infiltrate the operation since March 28, when they were alerted to it by firefighters.

Officers Couldn’t Infiltrate

Firefighters had responded to a house fire next door, and when the flames spread to the fence that surrounds the Mendoza property, they saw the cages.

Thomas said undercover officers had talked to Mendoza during the investigation but were never able to infiltrate the operation because of his extreme caution.

Thomas said investigators learned that fighting cocks were primarily being bred and trained on the property and then transported to Arizona, where fights are legal. However, he said there was an arena and fighting pit complete with a “lookout” tower on the property, suggesting that fights took place there.

Thomas said the operation went largely unnoticed by neighbors because most properties in the area are large, and raising chickens and other farm animals is commonplace.

The birds that were seized will be held pending the outcome of the suspects’ cases, officials said. If they are convicted, the birds will likely be destroyed by the city.