Manila: More than 300 pit bulls were seized and eight South Korean nationals were arrested on Friday in an illegal dogfighting facility in Laguna province.
The Koreans were detained in a police headquarters in Quezon City, where they will be charged today with illegal gambling and violation of the country's Animal Welfare Act, a Philippine Daily Inquirer report said.
Chief Inspector Renante Galang of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) identified those arrested as Lee Gwi-woo, 21, Kim Young-hwan, 29, Jeong Yeon-hwal, 31, Lee Kyung-won, 31, Kim Do-kyung, 41, Hong Jeong-oh, 43, Noh Min-chul, 44, and Hyun Ho-han, 45,
Five of the suspects were among those arrested in Cavite province in December for the same offence. The suspects were freed after posting bail.
A total of 333 pit bulls were seized during the raid of which 33 were taken during a raid in a two-hectare dogfighting facility in Limao Village, Calauan town in Laguna province while the rest were found in a farm in San Gregorio village in San Pablo City, also in Laguna province.
The raid team pounced on the suspects just as a dogfight was about to start.
Internet stream
"High-end cameras placed around the ring were ready to photograph the aborted fight when the raiding team came," said Galang.
Images of the dogfight were to be streamed through the internet to enable people to place their bets from abroad to watch the fight.
Police said those who place the bets — mostly from Korea — pay using credit cards.
Caretakers of the facilities claimed that the suspects were the ones renting out the facilities.
Ten dogs were put to sleep because they were badly hurt, Anna Cabrera, executive director of the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), also told the Inquirer.
The injured dogs were found in separate cages. The rest of the dogs were not properly taken care of.
"I could not see one dog whose ribs were not showing," she said, adding that the healthier ones were chained to steel barrels that also served as their shelters.
Asked why the police could not put a stop to the illegal dogfights run by Koreans, Cabrera said, "Those arrested for cruelty to animals are allowed to post bail."
