Five men were arrested Thursday afternoon for various offenses after police investigated an illegal “gambling parlor” set up on the sidewalk in the Downtown corridor.
Last week, an officer was given information from a Washington State Liquor Control Board agent about the illegal sale of cigarettes in the Downtown area by an individual without proper licensing. The officer went to contact the individual and observed a makeshift gambling table set up on the sidewalk with several men using gambling chips and money. No arrest was made at that time.
Around 3 p.m. Thursday, the officer observed the same group of subjects in the 2000 block of 3rd Avenue setting up the makeshift gambling table on the sidewalk. The same man identified by the Liquor Control Board agent was openly selling cigarettes from a suitcase without a license. The officer watched from a distance as the group actively played cards with currency, and he noted a pushcart next to them with multiple bottles of liquor and other items on the ground for sale.
Police contacted the group and took each of them into custody. Officers seized the following items during the search incident to arrest:
- Smith & Wesson .380 pistol (loaded with a round in the chamber)
- 357 packs of cigarettes
- 16.6 grams of hydrocodone
- 1.1 grams of crack cocaine
- 6.7 grams of cannabis
- Narcotics packaging
- 5 bottles of liquor
- $605.20 in U.S. currency
- Gambling chips
Officers booked two suspects into the King County Jail: a 63-year-old man for unlawful possession of a firearm (also found to be a convicted felon prohibited from having a firearm), and a 64-year-old man for felony narcotics and illegal cigarette sales.
The remaining three suspects – ages 51, 52, and 53 – were identified and released with charges requested for gambling offenses.
