Miami-Dade deputies say a 62-year-old property owner is behind bars after they raided a southwest county property Monday and found what they describe as an enclosed cockfighting training ring, dozens of caged birds and a gun. Officials also reported several dogs living in filthy conditions, which helped turn the search into a stack of felony animal-welfare and weapons charges.
Deputies identified the suspect as Leonardo Cabrera and say they executed the search warrant at a property in the 24400 block of Southwest 123rd Avenue, detaining him while they worked the scene. According to investigators, they found multiple game-fowl roosters kept alone in cages, an enclosed training ring, rooster vitamins and medications, an agitator and syringes, plus a dead rooster in a cage. They also reported locating 10 dogs confined in individual cages with urine and feces in the cage bases and no accessible food. Deputies say they recovered a firearm on the property and that Cabrera, a convicted felon, is barred from having guns. Cabrera was booked on charges that include breeding or possessing animals to fight, animal cruelty with intent to injure or kill and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center with his bond listed as “to be set,” according to Local 10.
State law and penalties
Florida's Animal Fighting Act classifies breeding, training, transporting or owning animals for fighting as a third-degree felony and lets courts seize animals and equipment tied to the crime. The law also makes it illegal to attend animal fights and to possess fighting paraphernalia, and it allows judges to ban convicted offenders from owning animals in the future, per Florida Statutes.
County rules and local enforcement
Miami-Dade's animal-cruelty code flatly prohibits using any property for animal fighting and gives authorities power to seize animals and arrange for their humane care or disposition, according to the Miami-Dade County code. Past cockfighting busts in the county have often turned up weapons, gambling operations and large numbers of birds and other animals, a pattern that helps explain why deputies frame these investigations as serious public-safety cases; see CBS Miami for an example.
What happens next
If convicted under the Animal Fighting Act, defendants face third-degree felony penalties and can be ordered to forfeit animals and any related fighting equipment, per Florida Statutes. Cabrera's case will move through Miami-Dade County courts, where prosecutors will present the arrest report and any additional evidence to a judge for a probable-cause review before formal charges are pursued.
The investigation is still active, and local officials say more information will be released as the criminal case progresses. Court filings and official records will give the next formal updates on the exact charges and any scheduled hearings.
