OAKLAND — When police showed up at a home on the 2000 block of 102nd Avenue, the resident inside reportedly insisted he was not involved in cockfighting, but rather was a simple chicken farmer who raised hens and roosters for eggs and meat, court records show.

But police say they seized ample evidence to the contrary — scissors to remove the birds’ spurs, metal gaffes and protective gear for fights, number labels, and performance-enhancing drugs, like testosterone, commonly administered to make the roosters more aggressive. Furthermore, animal control staffers on sight determined the caged hens there were being used to breed, not to feed, according to police.

On Aug. 27, prosecutors charged the resident, 65-year-old Eduardo Ochoa Vega, with a felony count of cruelly wounding an animal and four misdemeanors related to the possession of cockfighting roosters or implements, court records show. Ochoa Vega is not in custody and has not yet entered a plea, according to court records.

Police conducted the July 31 raid after gathering information that Ochoa Vega was keeping malnourished roosters and running a cockfighting ring at his residence, authorities said. In addition to several chickens, they also allegedly found three rabbits that were caged without access to food or water, according to court records.

Both Ochoa Vega and his wife denied involvement in cockfighting, though Ochoa Vega admitted to “prior” involvement, police said. He also reportedly denied using testosterone on roosters and said that he hadn’t used the metal gaffes or other cockfighting paraphernalia in years, and had been attempting to give them away.