U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, jointly with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other law enforcement partners, executed search warrants in Southern Mississippi that resulted in multiple arrests involving illegal immigration, cockfighting, and other criminal activity. The search warrants were part of an ongoing undercover investigation into the unlawful cockfighting in Harrison County, Mississippi.
The arrests included United States citizens and suspected illegal aliens found at the site of the makeshift animal fights attended by some people from outside Mississippi. Two defendants, Alvin Smith III and Herbert Kasey Smith, were charged with violating the Animal Welfare Act for hosting the cockfights bi-weekly on their property at 16478 Northup Cuevas Road, according to court documents.
In addition to the Smiths, several others were charged with conspiracy to violate the Animal Welfare Act for participating in activities related to the illegal game-fighting scheme. Those apprehended who were found to be illegally in the United States are now facing immigration-related charges. ICE Gulfport special agents and deportation officers are in the process of positively identifying all individuals they encounter and checking immigration records. They have not released the identities of several people arrested during the operation.
The ICE Homeland Security Task Force and the Border Enforcement Security Task Force led the investigation. In addition to possible state and federal charges relating to animal fighting and gambling, other investigative areas included illegal aliens, narcotics, and weapons. Partners in the operation include ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, Harrison County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the FBI.
According to ICE, those arrested at the site of the illegal gambling and cockfighting will face state and federal criminal or administrative charges as appropriate. Federal prosecutions will be led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi.
ICE-HSI Special Agent in Charge in New Orleans Eric DeLaune issued a statement saying, “In addition to the acts of animal cruelty perpetrated by the operators and encouraged by the participants, underground gambling operations such as these often have ties to other significant crimes, including narcotics violations, money laundering, and acts of violence. These crimes degrade the safety of our communities, and we are proud to be the ones stopping these illegal operations.”
This case is part of the Trump Administration’s Operation Take Back America. This nationwide initiative marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to combat illegal immigration, eliminate cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect communities from violent crime perpetrators. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.
Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol. Before his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @RandyClarkBBTX.
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