San Jose Police dismantle "clandestine gaming establishment" operating in industrial park
San Jose Police dismantle "clandestine gambling establishment"
SJPD officers on Wednesday executed a raid on an illegal casino operating out of an industrial warehouse. The operation was the result of a monthslong investigation that began in November.
San Jose - San Jose Police say they executed a raid to dismantle an illegal gambling operation this morning. Dozens of officers descended on a warehouse space in the 1700 block of Monterey Road which they say was the site of a makeshift casino.
The raid came as no shock to workers at neighboring businesses, who said that for months there had been abnormal activity at the location.
"We weren't surprised because you would kind of see a lot of things happening. Right, we just didn't say anything about it," Carlos Gonzales, who works nearby, told KTVU.
"This is a pretty intense area at times. So I kinda had a feeling it was that building because you just see activity there — a lot of traffic early in the morning, late at night, people that don't look like they're going to work," Priscilla Avila, who works at another business, said.
What they're saying:
San Jose Police described a "clandestine gambling establishment" as operating in the warehouse. Wednesday's raid was the result of a months-long investigation that began with patrol officers uncovering the illegal casino in November.
On Wednesday, with the help of the Mobile Emergency Response Group and Equipment (MERGE) and Vice units, among others, officers executed a search warrant. They detained several subjects, and ultimately arrested two.
Dig deeper:
They recovered lots of gaming equipment, along with one firearm and two stolen motorcycles. One of the stolen motorcycles belongs to Alely Israde Torres, who got a call from the police.
"(They said) ‘Oh we found your bike,’ and I was like, oh interesting because it's been stolen two, three years now," Torres said.
Local perspective:
Those employees at neighboring businesses said they're relieved the gambling operation has been shut down. They'd been worried about the casino being a potential safety risk to themselves and to their customers.
"The fact that they're gone, and it's cleared out, that makes us feel better, especially for customers. There's so many businesses around here. Nobody wants to be like, ‘am I safe getting out of my car?’" Avila said.