AdvertisementThe businesses are just two examples of a much larger illicit economy that has infiltrated urban centers and quiet residential neighborhoods throughout California, including San Diego County. While illegal gambling is a misdemeanor under state law, authorities say these underground parlors operating in the region are closely tied to gangs, drugs and violence. “Illegal gambling dens bring drugs, violence, guns, and other organized criminal activity into San Diego neighborhoods,” said FBI spokeswoman Davene Butler. Over Thanksgiving weekend, a shooting at a Del Cerro motel revealed several gaming machines set up for business in two of the rooms. And in June, at a Paradise Hills home operating as an illegal gambling den and marijuana grow site, police found a dead man wrapped in plastic.

Source: Los Angeles Times January 03, 2021 01:07 UTC