Gambling Machines Seized in Three Cities

Investigators conducting checks on cafes in three Orange County cities Wednesday night confiscated at least seven illegal gambling machines disguised as legitimate video games, authorities said.

Police moved in on the businesses after receiving complaints about the devices, which can bring in as much as $3,000 a week, Westminster Police Det. Tom Rackleff said. In the last three years, Rackleff said, he has confiscated a dozen of the machines.

The games switch between legal video games and poker games that can be used for gambling, he said.

“The owner or operator switches a button . . . so when we get there, all we see is someone playing a video game like Pac-Man or Tetris,” Rackleff said.

Detectives who started work about 7 p.m. removed four gambling machines from the Cat Bui Cafe in Santa Ana, Rackleff said.

At least one was taken from Cafe Thach Thao in Garden Grove, he said, and two from the Mask Cafe in Stanton, bringing to six the number confiscated from the Stanton business in the last two months.

Rackleff said he was unsure late Wednesday whether anyone had been arrested during the inspections. Convictions for possessing an illegal slot machine can bring a maximum punishment of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Investigators from Santa Ana, Westminster, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and the countywide Regional Gang Enforcement Team took part in the operation.