In a pre-dawn targeted crackdown on illegal activity in D’Abadie district, law enforcement officials have dismantled a secretive underground gambling operation, taking 21 individuals into custody and seizing thousands in cash along with untaxed alcohol, police announced in an official statement.
The four-hour intelligence-driven operation, carried out jointly by teams from the Inter-Agency Task Force and Maloney Police Station, unfolded between 1:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. on Sunday, May 17. Acting on developed tips, officers moved on a registered local business in the area, launching a court-authorized search of the property.
What investigators uncovered during the search revealed the operation’s deliberate efforts to avoid detection: a hidden, walled-off room concealed within the building’s structure. When officers gained access to the secret space, they found multiple men gathered in the middle of unauthorized gambling sessions, according to police accounts.
In total, 21 people were taken into custody: the owner of the commercial property and 20 male participants found on site. The premises owner is slated to face two formal charges: operating an illegal common gambling house and selling intoxicating liquor without the required licensing. Each of the 20 participants will be charged with assembling for the purpose of illegal gambling, police confirmed.
Along with the arrests, law enforcement seized a total of $10,527 in undeclared cash and multiple bottles of untaxed alcohol connected to the operation. The high-coordination sweep was led by senior officers including Superintendent McKenzie, Assistant Superintendents Balewa and Morales, Inspector Smith, and Woman Sergeant Ramai.