85 slot machines seized in raid of gambling operation at NC strip mall, sheriff says
A manager and two cashiers face charges after Rowan County sheriff’s investigators raided a strip mall arcade and seized 85 illegal slot machines, the sheriff’s office said Saturday,.
FishZilla Arcade, in the 1800 block of East Innes Street, housed an illegal gambling operation with 85 playing stations, including table model slot machines, stand-ups and “fish tables,” according to a sheriff’s office news release.
The devices allowed patrons to bet more than eight credits per play, and the arcade paid cash for credits earned, investigators said. Having five or more machines raises any gambling-related offenses to a felony, investigators said.
Investigators seized gambling-related documents and equipment and nearly $18,500 in cash during Thursday’s raid.
In the past two years, Rowan County sheriff’s investigators said they raided a string of illegal gaming operations that have made millions of dollars off bettors.
In North Carolina, the state lottery and games on Catawba and Cherokee tribal lands are the only legal forms of gambling, investigators said.
On July 1, the Catawba Indian Nation based in Rock Hill, South Carolina, opened a temporary slot machine gambling location in Kings Mountain.
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians owns the only two other casinos permitted by the state, both in the Western North Carolina mountains.
Harrah’s Cherokee Casino operates west of Asheville, near Maggie Valley about three hours west of Charlotte. Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River Casino is a four-hour drive from Charlotte near Georgia and Tennessee.
This story was originally published August 7, 2021 at 11:26 AM with the headline "85 slot machines seized in raid of gambling operation at NC strip mall, sheriff says."