button in SafariFour Arrested in Texas Poker Room Raid as Cops Crack Down on Raking Pots
Authorities raided another Houston poker club on Thursday and said it's just the start of a massive crackdown on cardrooms in the major Texas metro area.
Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare spoke to reporters outside Katy Poker, the most recent raided poker room. Teare accused the cardroom of of operating illegally.
Four individuals were arrested in the sting, all charged with engaging in organized criminal activity. An officer from the Harris County Sheriffs Office said he anticipates additional charges to follow, including potentially money laundering.
Katy Poker is a small room in Katy, Texas, with eight card tables. The poker room mostly spreads low to mid-stakes games. But, according to police, the business hasn't been operating within the law.
Houston Police No Longer Messing Around With Poker Rooms
Texas has some strict anti-gambling laws. But Chapter 47 of the Texas Penal Code does pave way for poker rooms to operate legally so long as rake isn't charged. In place of rake, the legal rooms such as Texas Card House and The Lodge Card Club, charge membership and seat fees.
There are some lawmakers who believe poker is illegal regardless of the business model. Teare, however, made it clear that the membership-based clubs are operating within the law and that authorities are not targeting those businesses.
Katy Poker, however, has been shut down for allegedly operating illegally by raking cash game pots. But there's more to the purpose for the raid than just the room allegedly collecting rake.
"These poker rooms, they're hubs for criminal activity," a Houston officer told reporters.
Authorities said the illegal poker rooms "cause problems with the rooms that operate legally." They also, police claim, are unsecured places with criminals often hanging around, waiting to rob poker players who leave the establishment with money in their pockets.
Katy Poker is the second cardroom in Katy, a town within the Houston metroplex, that has been raided in recent weeks. 101 Richmond, a popular poker room in the area, faced similar legal action last month. That room, however, reopened less than 24 hours later, but authorities seized $118,000 in cash.
No players were arrested in either raid, but police made it clear this is just the beginning of legal action to be taken against the Houston poker rooms that haven't been abiding by the membership-based business model.
