Bronx Teacher Hector M. Cruz Charged in Cockfighting Ring

HECTOR M. CRUZ, a 59-year-old Bronx public school teacher, was arrested and charged today with running a brutal cockfighting enterprise out of a facility in the Bronx. Federal authorities say Cruz bred, trained, and sold fighting roosters equipped with knives and gaffs, shipping them across the country for use in illegal animal fights where birds are often mutilated or killed.

According to a criminal complaint unsealed in Manhattan federal court, Cruz operated the rooster farm from December 2012 to January 2017, using social media to communicate with buyers and accepting payments of up to $600 per bird. The roosters were specifically bred for aggression and endurance, with their combs, wattles, and spurs surgically altered to enhance fighting capability—standard procedure in the underground world of organized cockfighting.

Preet Bharara, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, stated: “As alleged, Hector Cruz ran a cruel and illegal business of raising and selling roosters for the purpose of vicious cockfights where knives and other sharp instruments are attached to the fighting roosters’ legs. Thanks to the work of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Inspector General and the NYPD, Cruz’s days of allegedly profiting from this inhumane business are over.”

The USDA-OIG and NYPD’s Animal Cruelty Investigation Squad led the probe, uncovering evidence that Cruz’s operation was part of a broader network tied to illegal gambling, drug activity, and interstate animal trafficking. Special Agent-in-Charge Bethanne M. Dinkins emphasized that animal fighting ventures frequently serve as fronts for deeper criminal enterprises, calling the crackdown a priority for federal investigators.

NYPD Commissioner James P. O’Neill confirmed that Cruz’s arrest dismantled a key breeding hub in the Bronx. “Cockfighting often leads to the cruel killing of roosters. Hector Cruz’s arrest will stop the breeding and training of roosters for cockfighting at his facility in the Bronx,” O’Neill said.

Cruz is charged with selling, possessing, and transporting animals for purposes of participation in an animal fight—a federal offense carrying a maximum penalty of five years in prison. The case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael C. McGinnis and Alison G. Moe of the General Crimes Unit. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.