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Making Gambling Illegal Results in Criminal Involvement
USA --
Unrelated gambling raids conducted by law enforcement in Mississippi, Illinois, Florida, and Rhode Island this week led to the arrests of over forty individuals, and shut down gambling operations ranging from neighborhood games to organized crime outlets that included trafficking in narcotics and firearms. The conclusion most easily drawn: people want to gamble, whether the law allows it or not.
By making poker, sports gambling, slots, and other gaming entertainment choices illegal, the government does not prevent gambling from occurring. It simply creates a black market, where criminals thrive and build fortunes.
Thirty arrests took place around Providence alone, as an organized crime gang ran all kinds of operations, including gambling, and used extortion and violence to enforce its business.
Two men arrested in Illinois were charged with running gambling operations, and nearly $150,000 was seized.
Three men were arrested in Hattiesburg, Mississippi at the well-known town landmark, the Coney Island Cafe. The men had $30,000 confiscated as they were accused of booking sports bets.
And two men of Vietnamese ancestry were arrested in Orlando and charged with racketeering and bookmaking.
Millions of dollars spent conducting investigations, millions more to spend in court, while billions are bet without tax collectors seeing a dollar. Gambling is not slowed by illegalizing it, but consumers are put in the line of danger, and criminal empires enriched.
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