Feds Seize $600,000+ in Poker Room Raids
8 years ago
12 Dec
Two card-rooms in San Diego County were raided this week, with more than $600,000 seized and 25 arrest warrants issued.
Federal officials swooped on the Seven Mile Casino and the Black Jack Palomar Casino in an early morning operation aimed at suspected money-laundering of profits from high-stakes poker games.
The huge operation also saw arrests being made nationwide, with charges ranging from illegal book-making to failing to report winnings to federal authorities.
These raids follow a similar pattern to those that recently occurred in China, with the government cracking down on illegal rings.
Officials at the centre of the operation claim that David Stroj, aka ‘Fat Dave’, hired others to recruit high-stakes gamblers, and then conspired to launder the money through local card-rooms.
Prosecutors have claimed that Stroj’s scheme would see book-making clients make out cheques to card rooms, which would be deposited into another player's account. The money would then be withdrawn in cash or chips, with this method also being used at the Wynn and Bellagio casinos in Las Vegas, according to federal officials.
It is alleged that he made about $500,000 profit from $2million of monthly gambling activity, but the card-rooms claim that Stroj and the other arrested men have no connection to them.
Seven Mile Casino, on Bay Boulevard in Chula Vista, released a statement stating that:
They are owned and operated by Harvey Souza and his family, have worked tirelessly for the past 70 years to build upon their great-grandfather’s legacy and comply with the evolving regulations regarding card rooms across the state. They also claim that they “look forward to working with the California Bureau of Gambling Control to resolve all issues."
Stroj is also charged with transporting a person from Mexico to California for the purposes of prostitution, alongside his alleged money-laundering, illegal book-making, poker, and blackjack businesses.
One of the other major figures of the dawn raids is Naseem ‘Nick’ Saleem, the operator of the Black Jack Palomar Card Club on El Cajon Boulevard and Oregon Street. He is accused of failing to track those who won more than $10,000 per day.
According to assistant DA Joshua Mellor:
All financial institutions include casinos are required to report any cash transaction over $10,000.”
Saleem is also suspected of trying to evade detection of these financial wrongdoings by moving the money through illegal poker and blackjack games. “They were not duped. It was criminal in nature,” Mellor said of the suspects.
The 25 warrants resulted in 17 arrests, a separate 4 arraignments and 4 further arrest warrants for those who were deemed to be fugitives following the co-ordinated raids.
The raids followed a two year investigation by the California Department of Justice, Bureau of Gambling Control, and also involved the U.S. Attorney's Office, the California DOJ Indian and Gaming Law Section, the FBI, the IRS, HSI, and the San Diego Sheriff's Department, according to local reports.
California’s BGC immediately ordered Emergency Closure Orders on both the Palomar and Village Club card rooms, and Attorney General Kamala D. Harris released a statement saying:
These casinos engaged in money laundering and illegal gambling schemes that undermine the well-being of our communities.”
He added:
I thank our California Department of Justice Bureau of Gambling Control Special Agents, as well as our local and federal law enforcement partners, for holding the alleged perpetrators accountable for their financial crimes."
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