Federal indictments filed Sept. 10 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky accuse five men of involvement in alleged cockfighting operations at properties in Warren and Todd counties. The defendants are Christopher Copas, 53, of Bowling Green; Don Ray Haley, 60, of Elkton; James Holland, 57, of Bowling Green; Ramon Escamilla, 65, of Bowling Green and Mexico; and Eric Escamilla, 36, of Bowling Green, according to court records and a Justice Department release reported by The Courier-Journal.
The indictments allege different conduct. Ramon and Eric Escamilla are accused of conspiring to violate federal animal-fighting laws. The indictment alleges that Ramon Escamilla started a rooster-breeding operation on Hill Road in 2011 and that the alleged conspiracy lasted from about June 2023 until June 23 of this year. The Bowling Green Daily News reported that the pair are accused of exhibiting roosters at cockfighting derbies and selling or sending them to buyers, including customers in Mexico and the Philippines. The Bowling Green Daily News attributed those details to the indictment.
The other three men face charges alleging possession of animals for use in an animal-fighting venture. Court allegations say Haley had roosters at a farm in Todd County. Holland and others allegedly maintained a gamefowl operation on Claypool Alvaton Road in Bowling Green, while Copas is accused of running Kentucky Acres Game Farm on Price Chapel Road for the breeding, training and sale of roosters intended for cockfighting, according to indictment details reported by The Bowling Green Daily News.
Copas also faces a separate firearms charge involving a Lorcin Model L25 .25-caliber pistol whose serial number had allegedly been removed, WNKY News 40 reported. The cases followed federal searches at several Kentucky gamefowl-breeding operations on June 23 and 24, according to the same account and an Animal Wellness Action release.
The conspiracy charges carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The cockfighting-related charges also carry maximum prison terms of five years, while the firearm charge against Copas carries a separate five-year maximum, according to The Courier-Journal. All five defendants are scheduled for initial appearances Sept. 23 in Bowling Green.
What federal law covers
The cited Justice Department background explains the scope of federal authority in animal-fighting cases, but it does not provide a nationwide tally of violations or prosecutions. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, its Environment and Natural Resources Division has coordinated affirmative litigation under major federal animal-welfare statutes, including the Animal Fighting Venture Prohibition Act, since the department designated it for that role in 2014. Federal law prohibits participating in or facilitating an animal fight—including exhibiting, sponsoring, attending, transporting or training an animal for one—when the venture affects interstate commerce.
The defendants have not been convicted, and the allegations in the indictments remain unresolved in court. Animal Wellness Action, the Center for a Humane Economy and Showing Animals Respect and Kindness praised the agencies involved in the investigation in a statement, but those organizations' broader claims about enforcement and cockfighting networks are not necessary to establish the charges in these cases.
