Alameda Police Department (APD) shut down what they called an “illegal gambling den” in a home on the 600 block of Haight Avenue, near Webster Street, on Tuesday, September 2, according to an APD report [1] posted on Facebook.
[2]After receiving reports of possible illegal gambling activity at the address and conducting a “detailed investigation,” APD officers executed a search warrant at the residence, where they found illegal slot machines, gaming tables, cash, drug paraphernalia, two firearms—including an assault rifle—and ammunition.
The raid, which occurred at about 9 a.m., was a “full-scale operation,” according to a KTVU News [3] report, including a canine unit and drone surveillance.
Alameda police arrested two suspects, APD Chief Nishant Joshi told KRON4News [4]. The gambling equipment was removed from the property, according to the APD report. Chief Joshi said the illegal gambling had been going on for a couple of months, and the neighbors were relieved to see it shut down.
“They were very appreciative of the presence of the Alameda Police Department,” Chief Joshi told KTVU, noting that some of the neighbors had also noticed “an unusual amount of foot traffic in and out of the residence.”
Neighborhood support is what helps solve crimes, the Chief told KRON. “There were people who came out and voluntarily provided information, so that tells me this community is committed to public safety just as much as the Alameda Police Department is.”
Some of the neighbors said they were surprised to learn about the gambling den on their block. One neighbor, identified as Yen, told KTVU, “Alameda’s a really small community, so to see this happening was really surprising,” she said. “I wouldn’t think that it would be next door to me.”
Camaria Casher, an Oakland woman whose children go to school “just down the street,” told KTVU she also was very surprised. “I would never have thought that this was going on right here—a gambling shack?!”
The investigation of this case is ongoing, according to the APD report.