Illegal gambling in Macomb County broken up, leading to four arrests, 10 machine seizures
Four people were charged and several gambling machines were seized following two days of executed search warrants around Macomb County.
Thousands of dollars and multiple vehicles were also seized on Aug. 11 and 12 last week.
Each defendant is facing counts of operating a gambling ring, which is a 10-year felony count.
(FOX 2) - The Macomb County Sheriff's Office made several arrests and seized even more assets during a two-day sequence of search warrant executions across the county.
The work helped bust illegal gambling that was operating across multiple locations.
Big picture view
Four Macomb County residents were charged with running an illegal gambling operation after being taken into custody last week.
Search warrants were executed by the Macomb County Sheriff's Office at several homes across five different locations on Aug. 11 and Aug. 12. Residences in Sterling Heights, Clinton Township, Macomb Township, and Washington Township were among the locations.
In addition to the arrests, property, vehicles, and thousands of dollars in cash were seized during the operation, which was overseen by the Sheriff's Enforcement Team.
Illegal gambling busted
Dig deeper
On Monday, Aug. 11, the sheriff's team executed search warrants at the Floral Cafe in Macomb Township and homes in Sterling Heights and Clinton Township.
Mirela Deda, 53, and Alban Hulaj, 33, were taken into custody while five gambling machines, a vehicle, and more than $5,000 was seized.
On Tuesday, Aug. 12, more search warrants were performed, one at the Kelmendi Cafe in Macomb Township and a home in Washington Township.
Alban PReka, 43, and Trifon Mone, 57, were among those arrested. Another five gambling machines were seized, along with more than $12,000 in U.S. currency, and two more vehicles.
What's next
All four defendants were charged with one count of gambling operations and conspiracy to commit gambling. Deda, Preka, and Mone are also facing a high misdemeanor charge of maintaining a gambling house.
Additionally, Preka and Mone were charged with one-year misdemeanors of permitting a gambling apparatus.
They were all given a $10,000 personal bond.
Probable cause conferences and preliminary hearings are next for each of the four defendants.
The Source
A press release from the Macomb County Sheriff's Office was cited for this story.
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