A Virginia man, who sponsored animals during cockfights at the Big Blue Sportsmen’s Club in McDowell, KY, was sentenced on Monday, May 15 in the US District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon. Jimmy Crate Willis, 78, of Clintwood, Va, previously pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to knowingly sponsor and exhibit an animal in an animal fighting venture. Willis was sentenced to 1-year probation, a fine of $250 and a $100 special assessment.

According to evidence presented at previous hearings, Shirley and Vernon Slone owned the property in McDowell that housed the Big Blue Sportsman’s Club, hosted cockfights for more than 20 years. The facility, a 10,000 square-foot building that featured arena-style seating, multiple fighting pits and a restaurant, was the site of a law enforcement raid in 2014. Federal charges relating to cockfighting, gambling, and narcotics arose out of the investigation. The Slones pled guilty in March 2017 to one count of conspiracy to cause others to attend a cockfight, agreeing to forfeit $100,000 and pay for destruction of the facility. They are scheduled to be sentenced on June 8.