Florida Gaming Control Commission seizes 163 illegal slot machines in St. Petersburg
Operation Final Spin targeted two businesses.
US.- The Florida Gaming Control Commission (FGCC) seized 163 illegal slot machines and $247,285 in cash from two St. Petersburg businesses during search warrants executed on September 10. The enforcement action, named Operation Final Spin, was carried out with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Highway Patrol, and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco.
At Action Arcade, 6541 54th Avenue North, agents seized 90 machines and $142,020. Two people were issued notices to appear, each on one count of possession of slot machines and one count of keeping a gambling house.
At The Zoo Sports Club and Grille, 5111 66th Street North, agents seized 73 machines and $105,265. One person was issued a notice to appear on one count of possession of slot machines and one count of acting as an agent or employee of a gambling house.
Slot machines in Florida are legal only at eight licensed pari-mutuel facilities in Miami-Dade and Broward counties and at certain facilities operated by the Seminole Tribe of Florida. FGCC vice chair Tina Repp and Florida Republican state representative Berny Jacques took part in the operation.
Jacques said: “These machines are designed to take advantage of people, and far too often that means senior citizens living on fixed incomes who can least afford to lose what they have. Removing 163 machines and nearly $250,000 in cash from these operators is about protecting the most vulnerable members of our community.”
Repp said: “Operation Final Spin and the more than 200 illegal arcades we have shut down before this should make it clear that our goal is to disrupt and dismantle illegal gaming across the state of Florida.”
