A Romanian princess and her husband have been arrested over an alleged cockfighting ring in Oregon.
Princess Irina Walker who is the third daughter of the exiled Romanian King Michael I and her husband, John Wesley Walker have been charged as well as four other people for operating an illegal gambling business, reported CNN.
"Those six are also charged, along with 12 others, with conspiracy to violate the animal Welfare Act by conducting unlawful animal fighting ventures on 10 occasions, the statement said," reported CNN.
The arrests occurred Thursday in Oregon and Washington. The Walkers were arrested at their ranch outside the small town of Irrigon.
"Cockfighting is illegal under federal law and under the laws of all 50 states," Amanda Marshall, U.S. attorney for Oregon, said in a statement according to the AP. "Besides being a barbaric practice, cockfighting jeopardizes public health and safety and facilitates the commission of other criminal acts."
The indictment said 10 different cockfighting derbies were held at the Walker's ranch between April 2012 and April 2013, bringing in as much as $2,000 a day. Blades were attached to the birds' legs, spectators were charged admission, and food and drink were sold, the indictment said.
The others charged include Mario Perez, 62, David Sanchez, 29, of Jose Luis Virgen Ramirez, 48, and Aurelia Garcia Mendoza, 33.
The statement said that there were 10 different cockfighting derbies that were held at Walkers ranch between 2012 to 2013 that brought in as much as $2,000 a day. The Daily Mail reported that there were blades attached to the birds legs and people who came to watch were charged admission and food and drinks were sold.
The AP reported that the exiled King Michael and Queen Anne of Romania attended Irina's daughter's baptism in Portland in 1987. At the time of the baptism, Irina and her first husband, John Kreuger raised horses in Oregon.
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