10 arrested in weekend cockfighting raid

EARLVILLE -- Authorities say a cockfighting ring broken up over the weekend outside the LaSalle County town of Earlville had been going on for at least five years and generated thousands of dollars in illegal cash.

The Cook County Sheriff's Office conducted the raid Saturday after learning of a large card of fights in which participants agreed to pay $1,000 to enter as many as five gamecocks. Nearly 50 officers surrounded the barn just before the first fight was scheduled to begin.

The property owner, 51-year-old Rudolfo Villanueva, was charged with animal fighting for entertainment. Another nine people, including three from Milwaukee and one from Mexico, were charged with attending an animal fight, which is a new felony in Illinois.