Look for 34 missing gamblers pointing to Lake Taal

The Philippine authorities are investigating the claim that dozens of Cockfighter lovers who have disappeared three years ago have been killed and thrown into a volcanic lake.

At least 34 men – who were accused of fixing the fighting matches – disappeared without a trace in the capital Manila and its surrounding provinces.

Later, six suspects were accused of abducting, and on Thursday, one of them claimed in a television interview that the victims were strangled to death and were thrown into Lake Taal, which surrounds an active volcano.

Cockfering – where people are betting on a cock struggling to death, using the blades tied to their feet – is a multimillion -dollar industry in the Philippines.

The men are accused of having participated in live battles that were promoted during the Covid pandemic when the personal matches were forced to close. But this has made the industry even more at a time, generating about $ 620 million ($ 10.8 million; 8 million pounds) per month revenue from a government license.

A 2022 Senate investigation has also revealed that the daily betting of Rooster’s online battles has reached up to $ 3 billion ($ 52.4 million; $ 38.8 million).

But after the disappearance of men, live fighting – known locally as “e -sabong” – came under control and then President Rodrigo Duterte eventually banned them. The traditional cock fighting is still legal in the Philippines.

On Thursday, justice secretary Crispin Remula told reporters that authorities would strive for divers to seek human remains under the lake.

“We can’t just let him go and just let him go. We have to be responsible enough to look for the truth, especially in such cases,” he said.

Remulla also added that the authorities would look at the new development, adding that they were looking to find more witty.

The gambling is legal for the mostly Catholic Philippines, although church leaders are against it in all its forms.

Some online gambling operations are also related to criminal operations.

Last year, the Philippine authorities revealed Massive Fraud and Rings Centers for Traffic of People Hiding behind online casinos that serve continental Chinese customers.

This led President Ferdinand Marcos to ban the casino online, known as Pogos or Philippine offshore games.