Over 400 illegal gambling devices have been seized from dozens of bars, convenience stores and gas stations in Pennsylvania, the state’s attorney general announced Tuesday.
The machines were grabbed from establishments in Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Cambria, Crawford, Erie, Indiana, Somerset, Venango, Washington and Westmoreland counties.
The machines were advertised to be about games of skill, but really they involved gambling, said state officials, who didn’t say how much illegal proceeds they brought in.
“These devices were essentially slot machines dressed up as skill games. I commend our partners at the Pennsylvania State Police for helping disband a large-scale operation that netted a tremendous amount of illegal gambling profits,” the attorney general, Dave Sunday, said.
Felony corrupt organization charges have been filed against Buffalo Skills Games Inc. and J.J. Amusement Inc., which purportedly operated the illegal devices. Both companies are owned by John Conley, who has prior federal gambling-related convictions, according to the state’s attorney general’s announcement.
