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Lt. Houston Corn guards the front door of a local business Friday, one of eight establishments raided in
‘a crackdown by police on illegal gambling operations in the city.
Ptl. Jerry Tessneer confiscates money from a video poker machine during a raid of local establishments
Friday. Six of the 13 poker machines confiscated at one local business are pigtured.
STING
From Page 1-A
Kenneth Bryant Hamrick, 52,
owner of Silver Villa and Hugo's
Bar and Grill, 902 S. Battleground
Ave., was arrested at Silver Villa
Restaurant and Bar, 13 counts. He
was charged with four counts of
operating a slot machine, two gam-
bling violations, two counts of
making unlawful agreements, two
counts of illegal gambling and one
rcountrof allowing: ‘gambling ir 0
"house of efitertainniént.
Linda Rosa Hamrick, 41, 506
‘Branch St., co-owner of Silver
Villa, four counts. including oper-
ating a slot machine, allowing
gambling in a house of public en-
tertainment, illegal operation of
slot machines and allowing viola-
tions to occur.
Willard Pete Johnson, 56, 612
Mauney Ave., owner of Pete's
Game Room, 413 N. Piedmont
Ave., four counts, including gam-
bling, illegal operation of slot ma-
chines, two counts, and one count
of keeping slot machines.
Larry James Payne, 52, owner of
Houston's, 807 N. Cleveland Ave.,
eight counts, ‘including two counts
of illegal operation of slot ma-
chines, two counts of keeping slot
machines, two counts of gambling,
and two counts of operating a slot
machine.
Robert Michael Heath, 44, 811
Landing St., two counts of gam-
bling, two counts of illegal opera-
tion of a slot machine, two counts
of operating a slot machine, two
counts of making an agreement and
two counts of keeping a slot ma-
chine.
Hayes said the state ALE
charged Kenneth Roberts, owner
of Depot Stop N Go with a number
of counts and Angela Short, an em-
ployee of Mike's Game Room,
with 14 counts.
Because violators can only be
charged with a misdemeanor, pun-
ishable by a two year maximum
sentence per count, Hayes said that
many of those arrested only re-
ceived "a slap on the wrist." They
were free under $500 bonds await-
ing trial in Cleveland County
District Court February 6.
As officers stood watch over the
machines Friday. flashing signs
above the machines read:
“No cash payoff. These ma-
chines are in compliance with N.
C. statutes."
But when officers started check-
ing on receipts they found at one
establishment that at least 14 pay-
ments ‘had been made to gamblers
that day alone.
"You've got people paying every
penny they make into these ma-
chines,” said Lt. Houston Corn
who stood at the door to one of the
establishments which was filled
with nothing but a cash register
and poker machines.
A handful of customers were
asked o leave the premises at one
location but at all the locations the
operation was smooth with cooper-
ation from operators and cus-
“we'll give them back,’
tomers, according to Hayes. Police
guarded the doors as other police
cleared out the machines and cart-
ed them out the door.
Cash receipts confiscated by po-
lice documented cash payouts to
players who accumulated credits
on the poker machines, said Hayes.
Police loaded the machines onto
UHaul trailers and took them to
the police department Friday after-
noon for evidence. County magis-
trate Cecil Murray set up his office
atthe Police Repartment to: sess,
the suspeets.: :
If the justice ephrtingnn says
they can have the machines back,
' said Hayes.
He said the machines will be held
until after the court trial and if the
judge orders they be destroyed
that the police will take the ma-
chines to the county landfill.
The money confiscated in the
bust will be used for drug enforce-
ment by police and for schools, un-
der law.
The poker machines are valued
at $3500 each.
Hayes said that none of his offi-
cers had prior knowledge of the big
Ptl. Lisa Capps, left, and Ptl. Brent Hart serve a warrant on a sus-
sweep. They were sent a memoran-
dum from him to report to the po-
lice: department at 3 p.m. Friday for
an inspection and were told to
dress out in full uniform with bul-
let proof vests.
“This was a very secretive oper-
ation, not because we didn't trust
our officers but because we wanted
it to be the success it was,"
he said.
Officers gathered at 3 p.m. in the
police department. Hayes and
Reynoldsscatted in: ~the-various.
: sergeants and assigned:
: . squads
that would go to the various loca-
tions and the search teams went out
simultaneously.
"We wanted everyone to be hit at
once so there would no chance for
calls to be made to warn other
businesses that we were on the
way," said Hayes.
Hayes said he was well pleased
with the full cooperation he re-
ceived from the owners of the vari-
ous businesses and from the public.
"We're putting people on notice
that gambling won't be tolerated in
Kings Mountain, " said Captain
Reynolds.
pect charged with illegal gambling operations Friday during a raid by
police.
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Thursday, December 28, 1995 - THE KINGS MOUNTAIN HERALD - Page 11A
Captain Richard Reynolds checks out a video poker machine and prepares to take it out of a local busi-.
ness Friday after police raided illegal gambling operations in the city.
3
HR
Ptl. Brent Hart, facing camera, and Captain Richard Reynolds load up video poker machines on a
UHaul during a big raid of illegal gambling operations Friday.
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