Eight Arrested Following Illegal Gambling Bust in Texas

  • Officials were alerted to the illegal gambling operation following a tip-off
  • An officer went undercover at the facility for three months
  • Almost 80 gaming machines were found on the premises during a police raid
police officers making an arrest
Police have made eight arrests following a raid on an illegal gambling operation in San Antonio, Texas. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

Long-running investigation

Eight people have been arrested after an undercover sting operation unveiled an illegal gambling operation in San Antonio, Texas.

This raid took place on the southwest side of the city following an investigation that began back in February. The San Antonio police department was tipped off about this illegal gambling operation by a local woman who was concerned about her mother.

her mother was spending all the money she had at a premises called the Somerset Center

The woman said that her mother was spending all the money she had at a premises called the Somerset Center, which was on block 7300 in Somerset.

Undercover sting operation

This led to an investigation team being formed. It was in March that an officer from the SAPD went undercover in order to infiltrate this illegal gambling operation.

The undercover assignment lasted for three months. It involved the officer visiting the location occasionally meeting and speaking with some of the people working at the center.

During this time, the officer was able to find three different rooms that were used for illegal gambling. Each of these rooms had gambling machines in them, totaling 55 eight-line machines.

Outcome of the raid

During the raid, almost 80 gambling machines were found throughout the entire premises. The undercover officer also saw winners from these machines getting paid their winnings by the workers at the facility.

almost 80 gambling machines were found throughout the entire premises

The officer gained the trust of the people at the establishment. He paid to take part in an application process, with the goal of getting a key card. These key cards were used in order to access the facility.

The officer could then actively play on these illegal gambling machines and properly analyze what criminal offenses were occurring. He was also present at this facility when the search warrant was presented and the raid took place.

As a result of this search, eight arrests made. This included Elma Ramos Garcia, 59, who the undercover officer said would pay out winnings to players. Garcia and the seven others were arrested for engaging in organized criminal activity.

Others arrested were Diana Garcia, 41; Teresa Delgado Perez, 35; Elda Adamina Sanchez, 44; Adrian Gabriel Sanchez, 38; Adaljisa Ramos Gonzalez, 75; Aida Teresa Garcia, 28; and Aaron Gonzalez Jr., 19.

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