Three game rooms in the Cleveland area were raided simultaneously around 8:30 p.m. Friday night in a concerted effort by the Liberty County Attorney’s Office, Liberty County Sheriff’s Office and the Pct. 5 Constable’s Office.
“This has been a long-term, three-month investigation,” said Pct. 5 Constable David Hunter. “We received a lot of intel from citizens about illegal gambling proceeds being paid out at these game rooms.”
Patrons who were inside the establishments when they were raided were issued citations for illegal gambling and will have to appear in a justice of the peace courtroom in the coming days. Employees were arrested and taken to the Liberty County Jail.
“The owners will probably face multiple charges later,” Hunter said.
Two of the three illegal game rooms were in Tarkington — one in an old restaurant space behind the Chevron gas station at the intersection of SH 321 and SH 105 and one in a brick building just south of that location in a building once used as a body shop. The third game room is located south of the AM & PM Shell station on US 59 at Morgan Cemetery Road in Cleveland.
“What I would like everyone to understand is we are not just picking on patrons in these game rooms. This is a criminal activity. The problem with illegal gambling is that it brings a lot of other criminal activity, such as robberies, stabbings, drugs and other violent crimes,” Hunter said. “This is why we can’t have these establishments. They are not being operated legally and properly, and we don’t want illegal criminal activity in our community.”
An updated story will be posted on Saturday after Bluebonnet News interviews Liberty County Attorney Matthew Poston.
The game room behind the Chevron station in Tarkington was among three raided Friday night by law enforcement. 
The game room behind the Chevron station in Tarkington was among three raided Friday night by law enforcement. 
A game room just south of the SH 321-SH 105 intersection in Tarkington was among three raided Friday night by law enforcement. 
A game room on the 3300 block of US 59 South in Cleveland, next to the AM & PM Shell Station, was among three raided Friday night by law enforcement. 
A game room on the 3300 block of US 59 South in Cleveland, next to the AM & PM Shell Station, was among three raided Friday night by law enforcement. 
Pct. 5 Constable David Hunter (left) and Deputy Constable James Gardiner talk to a subject at a raid of a game room located behind the Chevron station at SH 321 and SH 105 Friday night. Three game rooms in the Cleveland area were raided at the same time in a concerted effort by the constable’s office, Liberty County Sheriff’s Office, Liberty County Attorney’s Office and the Liberty County District Attorney’s Office.
[…] Game rooms raided Friday night in Cleveland by law enforcement […]
Good going. What about the ones in Raywood,The town of Liberty, Dasetta? Get them all.They all are breaking the law.Dasetta stays open 24=7. Come on guys they don’t sell that much pizza.And that money they make goes back to their home country.Take the lottery beer cig.away if you catch them paying any cash,any at all !