Houston game room raids: 61-year-old ring leader among 16 charged in $22 million scheme; 45 arrested in total
The Brief
Local and federal law enforcement raided 30 illegal gaming rooms across the Houston area on Wednesday.
Nearly 15 people were taken into custody. Two are still wanted.
A Richmond man allegedly used family members, among others, to operate game rooms, then transferred proceeds to his other financial assets.
Over 30 undocumented immigrants were allegedly arrested for working as armed security.
The alleged leader paid who he thought was a corrupt officer for protection from the law. The officer was actually undercover.
HOUSTON - A 61-year-old man is among 45 people arrested for a multi-million-dollar scheme involving illegal game rooms in the Houston area. According to federal officials, 30 of the man's game rooms were the target of police raids on Wednesday.
What we know
U.S. Attorney Nicholas Ganjei says over 720 law enforcement agents and officers were involved in Wednesday's raids. The operation involved about 20 local and federal agencies, including Houston police, the Harris County Sheriff's Office, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the IRS, and the FBI.
Officials raided 45 locations in total across the Houston area, including 30 alleged illegal gaming rooms with names like "El Portal" and "Yellow Building."
Ganjei says the raids were the result of a five-year "Operation Double Down" operation involving multiple agencies. Officials were executing 85 warrants and a 37-count indictment against 16 suspects.
The following 14 have been arrested:
Nizar Ali, 61, from Richmond
Naeem Ali, 33, Richmond
Amer Khan, 68, Richmond
Ishan Dhuka, 33, Rosenberg
Shil Karovalia, 32, Rosenberg
Safarez Maredia, 38, Sugar Land
Shoaib Maredia, 40, Sugar Land
Yoland Figueroa, 40, Pasadena
Viviana Alverado, 45, LaPorte
Anabel Eloisa Guevarra, 46, Houston
Precela Solis, 27, Houston
Maria Delarosa, 53, Houston
Claudia Calderon, 37, Houston
Lucia Hernandez, 34, Houston
Two others are still wanted:
59-year-old Sayed Ali of Richmond
35-year-old Stephanie Huerta of Houston
The suspects are accused of "conspiracy, operating an illegal gambling business and interstate travel in aid of racketeering," with each charge carrying an up to five-year prison sentence. The suspects are also charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering, which carries an up to 20-year sentence.
According to Ganjei, no game room customers were arrested during the raids. Only those who were accused of helping to operate the game rooms were reportedly arrested.
"Nobody here is being charged with simply gambling. It's for people that were operating this criminal scheme and laundering money," Ganjei said.
In addition to the arrests, officials seized over 2,000 illegal slot machines, eight firearms, "numerous high-end vehicles," 100 Rolex watches, $4.5 million in cash, and $6.5 million from accounts and other financial institutions.
What we don't know
It's also not clear what other 15 locations were targeted in Wednesday's raids.
RELATED: Houston game rooms raided: Numerous locations targeted by authorities
The backstory
According to Ganjei, the game rooms were all being operated under one mastermind: 61-year-old Nizar Ali.
Ali allegedly used family members, among others, to operate illegal game rooms across the Houston area. Ali then disguised the proceeds from the game rooms by distributing them among his businesses, 25 bank accounts, and other assets.
Ganjei says Ali made $22 million in illicit proceeds.
The suspect allegedly also hired 31 undocumented immigrants as armed guards for the game rooms and his other businesses. Those immigrants were arrested "on various immigration and firearm charges" during Wedensday's raids, according to Ganjei's office.
"The scheme itself was sophisticated in its design and operation," Ganjei said in a press conference on Thursday. "It utilized armed security, surveillance systems, membership lists, and member ID cars to ensure that those that were accessing these game rooms were legitimate customers of theirs and couldn't otherwise expose the operation."
In addition to the other charges, Ali is also charged with 32 counts of federal program bribery.
Ganjei says Ali bribed who he thought was a corrupt Houston police officer, so his operations could be hidden from the law. The officer was actually undercover and involved in the investigation.
The Source
United States Attorney's Office - Southern District of Texas.
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