Police have arrested a Texas mayor, who is also a school administrator, after an undercover operation discovered illegal gambling at a laundromat he owns. Christopher Armacost is the mayor of Hitchcock, a small town close to Galveston. The 44-year-old is also an assistant superintendent at Hitchcock Independent School District.
Law enforcement arrested him on Wednesday on charges of engaging in organized criminal activity. A county lieutenant received a tip about a laundromat having five eight-liner machines, electronic devices that closely resemble slot machines that are illegal in Texas.
found text messages on her phone to and from Mayor Armacost discussing the gambling operation
Two officers went undercover to Comfort Zone Washateria and played with $20 on two machines before exchanging their tickets for cash with the attendant. They returned the following day with a search warrant and arrested the attendant, Nancy Landert, as she had an outstanding warrant. A sergeant found text messages on her phone to and from Mayor Armacost discussing the gambling operation.
The Galveston County Sheriff’s Office also executed another 20 search warrants the same day as part of a wider crackdown on illegal gambling, which resulted in over two dozen arrests. One of the raids was in City Hall.
