It was a crime that had been talked about for a few years, but when its details were supposedly revealed by a whistleblower the details were both sickening and frightening.

Anywhere from 34 to as many as a hundred cockfighting aficionados, known locally as sabungeros, had disappeared from the face of the earth.

They had disappeared in small groups within a short time frame. Their disappearance surprised their families, many of whom had turned to authorities for help.

Initial suspicion was that it was a case of kidnapping, and that the missing mostly middle aged men would eventually reappear. This was the best case scenario, one that all the families were hoping and praying for.

What the whistleblower said confirmed their worst fears. The sabungeros has been killed and their bodies disposed of in Taal lake.

Worst of all, members of the Philippine National Police were said to have been involved in the kidnapping and eventual killing of the missing persons.

The mastermind was a known gambling lord, who had somehow managed to legalize his operations through legal mumbo jumbo and with the help of very powerful people. 

Among his partners in crime was his supposed paramour, an actress from a showbiz family, best known for latching on to rich boyfriends. 

This gambling lord had focused his attention on e-sabong, a form of online gambling where bets were placed on cockfights which were shown live.

This dispensed with the need for cockfighting arenas, which are found all over the country, and which have been around supposedly as far back as the pre-Spanish era. Meaning cockfighting has been a favorite pastime of red-blooded Pinoy men for centuries.

Cockfighting is a lot like boxing but instead of two men slugging it out until one falls or gives up, two cocks – male chickens which is also universal slang for penis – fight to the death.

Both cocks have blades attached to one of their legs, so there are many instances where both cocks end up dead. The loser is the one that dies first.

Some sport, huh?

There are many millionaires and billionaires who are cockfighting aficionados. They think nothing of spending huge fortunes to import cocks or even unhatched eggs born of supposedly tough as nails roosters and ultra healthy hens.

(Maybe I should start using the word roosters more in place of cocks because no one refers to penises as roosters, no?)

Over the years, I’ve met a handful of cockfighting aficionados, and even have a relative or two who belong to the club. I never understood their pastime but who am I to judge?

Anyway, as an aside, I once met a Grab driver who told me he had had engaged in a form of e-sabong during the COVID pandemic. 

He said he had lost his job and was willing to do anything to feed his family. This I understood. The idea of having a backyard cockfight was one possibility that he was willing to try.

He did so by having a few friends over, two of whom owned fighting roosters. Ok, cocks.

The game did well enough that he decided to invite other restless sabungeros to join in since all it took was to show the fights through their cellphones, and a minor industry was born.

This kept him alive throughout the remainder of the pandemic, and he turned to driving his car for Grab when the lockdown ended.

He did not see himself as a criminal. He just did what he had to do.

(Note: Grab is to the Philippines what Uber is to the US and many other markets. There used to be an Uber in the country, but Grab found a way to buy them out.)

Anyway, the supposed mastermind of the mass killings of 34 sabungeros has been identified, as has his girlfriend. Justice Secretary Crispin Remulla identified them as Atong Ang and Gretchen Barreto.

Remulla initially described the initially unnamed mastermind as a “very powerful figure” and the Justice sec even consulted with a Supreme Court justice for advice on how to pursue the case.

Remulla has said that the Justice department is bent on pursuing the case knowing full well that Atong Ang can afford a who’s who of the country’s top lawyers to defend him.

This means that chances of convicting Ang even in the face of overwhelming evidence will be a tall order. Hell, it will be as close to impossible as it gets, given the country’s barely working judicial system that is skewed heavily in favor of the ultra rich and powerful.

Imelda Marcos has been convicted with finality, but she has never spent even a single minute in prison, has she?

Lately, there has been a proposal to outlaw all forms of online gambling.

Former senate president Migz Zubiri was among its proponents, and many quarters have aired their support, including the powerful Catholic Church.

The proposal is not as impossible or improbable as it seems, as it only seeks to ban online gambling. 

Regular legalized gambling like casinos, bingo, horse racing, and the like will stay as they do provide big bucks to the government’s coffers. Even lotto is a form of legalized gambling where chances of winning range between nil and none.

Online gambling will include games, which has been growing in popularity, especially among the youth.

As I enjoy watching collegiate basketball and volleyball games on TV, I could not help but notice that online gaming is being heavily advertised in the medium.

The top spokesperson is comedian-TV host Vic Sotto. This must make his son, Mayor Vico Sotto, uncomfortable and may be a factor in the celebrated mayor’s announcement that he will not seek higher office when his third and final term as Pasig chief executive ends.

This awful situation can only get worse.

The only solution is to completely, totally, and absolutely ban online gambling. No exceptions.

This should not be too difficult, as the government does not make that much money from e-sabong and the like anyway. The only hurdle will be if Mr. All-Powerful Gambling Lord decides to spend billions to make sure enough lawmakers see things his way.