Two men from Indian River County are now in custody facing racketeering charges following a raid on an illegal arcade by the sheriff's department.
Deputies arrested the men at different locations and accused them of the same offense. They are currently being held at the Indian River County jail on a $1 million bond.
WPTV was present as investigators seized illegal gambling machines from a building on 27th Avenue. A second location, Panda Arcade in Vero Beach, at the intersection of US1 and Eighth Street, was also raided.
The arrested individuals, Jing Yang and Jinquan Lin, are both 35 years old. Capt. Joe Abollo of the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office indicated that investigators have been monitoring these individuals for some time.
“This incident is an ongoing investigation so this is just one part of a bigger moving operation that we’ve identified, almost like an enterprise," he told WPTV. "Which is why we have the racketeering charges on these two gentlemen that we arrested today.”
The sheriff's office has indefinitely closed both establishments. Capt. Abollo also stated that more arrests are expected in connection with Wednesday's raids shortly.
WPTV received a statement Thursday from the Indian River County Sheriff's Office:
The Florida Gaming Control Commission assisted the Indian River County Sheriff's Office on Wednesday to shut down two illegal casinos in Vero Beach. Two arrests have been made thus far on racketeering and illegal gambling charges. Agents seized 68 illegal slot machines and $37,719 cash on-site, as well as multiple bank accounts and two commercial properties. This investigation is ongoing.
