100 arrested in Vietnam cockfighting busts

By Quoc Thang, Pham Du June 22, 2019 | 05:27 am PT

People lie down on the ground after their cockfighting event was busted by police in Vinh Long Province, June 22, 2019. Photo by VnExpress/Quoc Thang.

Around 100 people were arrested Saturday at two cockfighting events in the southern Vinh Long Province and the northern Hoa Binh.

Police from the Ministry of Public Security arrested more than 30 people at the Vinh Long event. They said they also seized hundreds of millions of dong (VND100 million = $4,300) in cash as well as roosters and other pieces of evidence.

The cockfight was orchestrated by a street gang in the region, police said. Gamblers could bet up to millions of dong on each fight.

"The cockfighting event is a local gambling hotspot," said a representative for the Criminal Police Department.

The street gang and its activities are being investigated further.

Up north in Hoa Binh, police busted nearly 100 people betting in cockfights in an abandoned house and managed to arrest 66 of them.

Ngoài 66 người bị bắt cảnh sát xác định gần 30 người đang bỏ trốn.

Roosters seized from a cockfighting bust in Hoa Binh Province, June 22, 2019. Photo courtesy of Hoa Binh Police.

They also seized 22 roosters, 13 cars and 57 motorbikes of the players, who came from Hanoi, Hoa Binh and nearby provinces. Police said the cockfighting event is organized every Saturday between 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Gambling is largely illegal in Vietnam. The government has relaxed its stance on gambling as a "social evil," legalizing sports betting at certain venues in 2017 and allowing people aged over 21 with a monthly income of at least VND10 million ($445) to play in a casino in the southern Phu Quoc Island on a pilot basis. But online gambling remains illegal.