In the past two weeks, Honolulu police and agents with Homeland Security Investigations delivered more than 60 notices to Oahu property owners who need to clean out illegal game rooms or face criminal charges and asset forfeiture.
In July 2023, HSI delivered notices to property owners housing illegal game rooms that resulted in about 62 properties being cleaned up and the criminal activity moved out, according to federal officials.
Honolulu Police Chief Arthur “Joe” Logan, speaking to reporters at the Honolulu Police Department’s main station, said the notices were delivered to property owners where “we believe illegal activities are taking place” in Kalihi, Waianae and other Oahu neighborhoods.
The notices are part of a joint federal and county effort to shut down the roughly 120 game rooms operating on Oahu.
Logan said additional warnings are “forthcoming.”
“Illegal game rooms negatively impact entire neighborhoods and the quality of life for the families who live there,” Logan said. “Game rooms attract criminals and illegal activity. There have been shootings and robberies in and near these establishments. Drug use and sales are also common. We hope this joint operation will send a strong message to property owners and their agents. If they turn a blind eye, they risk losing their properties.”
In 2023, HPD officers made 200 gambling arrests, 108 for operating, promoting or assisting gambling and 92 for gambling equipment violations.
Illegal game rooms operate out of residential homes, businesses, empty office spaces and other private commercial spaces. They feature all kinds of games of chance, including digital contests like “Fish Hunter” and “Pot of Gold” that users can play and rack up cash prizes, card games, dice, and other forms of casino gaming.
Law enforcement officials are prioritizing the game rooms to go after and make cases against the property owners and operators.
Game rooms near schools, churches or anywhere kids learn or play come first. Using a mix of informants and undercover officers, infiltrating an illegal gambling den and gathering the evidence needed to make cases can take anywhere from two to three weeks to up to four months.
HPD’s Narcotics Vice Division has about 10 officers assigned to target and take down illegal game rooms.
HSI Acting Special Agent in Charge Lucia Cabral- DeArmas said the notices delivered to property owners were both a warning and an opportunity to educate them about the law.
“These illegal game rooms are generating a lot of money. We’re talking about $1 million a year and that’s very conservative. That million dollars is not being spent on our keiki after-school activities or anything positive for the community. It is being used to continue their illegal enterprise by purchasing weapons, narcotics and continuing to be a nuisance to our community,” Cabral- DeArmas said. “We live in these communities. We care about these communities. If it’s not cleaned up, then we will have to take action.”
HSI Group Supervisor James Beagle said after a notice is served, the property owners are given an opportunity to contact federal agents and police to talk through the next steps.
“We ask them to contact us. We ask them questions about who they may be leasing properties to, things of that nature. We’re looking for communication with those property owners and we are willing to work with them,” Beagle said.
There is no set timetable for compliance, each case is different, and federal agents and police will engage the property owner in a conversation about how best to kick out illegal operators.
Maj. Mike Lambert, who oversees HPD’s Narcotics Vice Division, said the owners and operators of illegal game rooms cover the “full spectrum” of criminals.
“You have your businessmen type, who typically don’t do anything else but want to profit,” Lambert said. “They see it as an opportunity to profit from illegal gaming, all the way to straight-up organized crime. And, of course, that spectrum is extremely concerning to the community because with organized crime, you’re talking about drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and then, like what we’ve seen in Wahiawa, when there is competition for security, they try to rob each other and that can be fatal.”
Following that incident May 16 Opens in a new tab, Alize Ou was charged with second-degree murder, first-degree attempted murder, attempted second-degree murder and three firearms-related counts.
Ou allegedly shot and killed Christopher Miyose and shot Travis Key. A little after 9:30 p.m. on May 16, three men entered an illegal gambling room inside a Wahiawa home as part of an attempted robbery.
All three men, ages 31, 22 and 29, were allegedly shot by Ou.
Law enforcement officials are taking advantage of a new state law that enhances penalties for people who advance gambling operations.
On July 9, Gov. Josh Green signed Act 249 into law which broadens the scope of advancing gambling activity to include forms of material aid, such as maintaining equipment and managing financial operations.
Hawaii and Utah are the only two states in the country that outlaw all forms of gambling.
Act 249 emphasizes the responsibility of landlords and property owners who may knowingly or unwittingly harbor illegal gambling operations on their premises.
Also in July, the Honolulu City Council adopted a plan Opens in a new tab to set up a city-led gambling task force composed of HPD, the city departments of the Prosecuting Attorney, Planning and Permitting, Corporation Counsel, the Office of Council Services and the City Council.
The task force will “advise and assist the Council on identifying and developing solutions to combat the ongoing proliferation of illegal game room operations in the city,” according to the resolution that created it.
Honolulu Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Gabriel Huntington said that the warnings are important because “they serve as notice for both civil and criminal charges Opens in a new tab.”
“People who receive this notice may be subject to asset forfeiture … nuisance abatement lawsuits, or under the new Act 249, they may also be subject to felony prosecution.”
Logan asked the public to serve as law enforcement’s “eyes and ears” in Oahu’s communities.
“They (illegal game rooms) are in your neighborhoods, in your business communities, so we ask for your help identifying them,” Logan said. “We’re not done yet … If you have an illegal game room on your property and you didn’t get a warning, don’t worry, it’s just a matter of time.”
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Report crime
If you have information on illegal game rooms, contact:
>> Phone: 808-723-3933 or CrimeStoppers at 808-955-8300
>> Online: Leave a tip at HonoluluCrimeStoppers.org
Tipsters may remain anonymous.
