State agents make five arrests, seize 179 devices from two sites.
-
State agents shut down two illegal gambling houses in White Springs, including the Social Center, on Wednesday after executing search warrants. Five people were arrested. (COURTESY)
WHITE SPRINGS — A pair of White Springs illegal gambling houses were shut down following a state raid Wednesday.
In executing search warrants at two Internet cafes in town, the Florida Gaming Control Commission’s Division of Gaming Enforcement, with assistance from the Florida Highway Patrol’s Rapid Response Team as well as the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, made five arrests and seized 179 suspected illegal gambling devices, computers, ATMs and an undetermined amount of cash.
According to the FGCC, the investigation into the illegal gambling houses in White Springs continues.
“The state of Florida will not condone illegal gambling,” FGCC Executive Director Lou Trombetta said in a release.
Warrants were executed at the Coff33 Cafe and the Social Center, both on Spring Street in White Springs, on Wednesday. Three arrests were made at Coff33 Cafe on charges of possession of slot machines and keeping a gambling house. Two arrests were made at the Social Center, also on charges of possession of slot machines and keeping a gambling house.
According to the FGCC’s release on the arrests, slot machines are heavily regulated in Florida and are only legal in eight pari-mutuel facilities in Miami-Dade and Broward counties and facilities operated by the Seminole Tribe of Florida.
“The FGCC will continue to combat illicit gambling to protect the safety of Florida’s communities, and we appreciate the public’s help in identifying suspected illegal gambling sites,” Carl Herold, FGCC’s director of law enforcement, said in a release.