By SYDNEY KENT
The Wells County Superior court did not accept guilty pleas for two people arrested in a cockfighting ring case last fall.
Aung Myint, 63, and Ma Nyon Sun, 51, both of Fort Wayne, were set to plead guilty to charges related to a cockfighting right in the Wells Superior Court this week. However, during Sun’s hearing Monday, Judge Andrew Antrim voiced concern about accepting the plea due to confusion surrounding accountability for the crime Sun committed.
“She may be saying she didn’t know what they were doing was illegal,” Prosecutor Colin Andrews explained. “However, ignorance of the law doesn’t preclude culpability.”
A similar situation followed during Myint’s hearing on Tuesday.
“I don’t have anything to show you guys,” Pau Thang, Myint’s translator, said on his behalf. “I just purchased the animals and raised them.d”
This comment came after Antrim explained to Myint that for him to accept a plea of guilty, the court had to be certain that Myint committed the crime. However, when asked if he indeed purchased an animal intending to use it for fighting, Myint denied the allegation.
Antrim questioned if the case should be set for trial, however, Myint’s lawyer, Cory Spreen, felt continued conversation would clarify the confusion.
A change of plea hearing for Sun was reset for Sun at 9 a.m. on Sept. 11. The hearing for Myint was reset for 9 a.m. on Aug. 24.
The two, in addition to Kan Lay, were arrested last November following a year-long investigation into the cockfighting ring located just north of Bluffton city limits. After local and state authorities raided the ring on Nov. 3 last year, they found over 100 living birds, all of which had to be euthanized due to the conditions of the farm. Court documents include details of horrific animal abuse, including tying cattle horns together, breaking goats’ legs, and throwing piles of animal carcasses in burn pits.
All three arrested were charged with purchasing an animal for use in a fighting contest, a Level 6 Felony. Lay, 48, Ossian, pleaded guilty to charges last month. His sentencing is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 14.
sydney@news-banner.com
