Police, California DOJ raid alleged illegal gambling operation in Vallejo; 3 arrested

By Tim Fang

Multiple arrests were made and gaming machines were seized after an alleged illegal gambling den was raided in Vallejo last week, authorities said.

Officers with the Vallejo Police Department and California Department of Justice investigators executed a search warrant at an establishment on 2400 block of Sonoma Boulevard, between Alabama and Louisiana streets, around 7 a.m. on Oct. 21.

“Illegal gambling establishments operating in Vallejo are a public safety concern that the Vallejo Police Department takes seriously,” Police Chief Jason Ta said in a statement.

The business, which they referred to as a “Bi-Zone,” became the subject of an investigation in July for suspected illegal gambling. Officers provided information to the Department of Justice, in which the agency’s Bureau of Gambling Control took over the investigation and prepared a search warrant.

During the operation, eight people were detained inside the business. Investigators said they seized three illegal multiplayer gambling machines.

Among those detained, three had outstanding warrants. According to police, one suspect had two warrants out of Solano County for failing to appear in court, each with a $3,000 bail.

A second person also had a failure to appear warrant out of Solano County, with bail at $25,000. The third person had a warrant for contempt of court in Sonoma County, with bail set at $100,000.

Police arrested and booked all three suspects into the Solano County Jail on their outstanding warrants.

“Let this operation serve as a lesson to not bet against the California Department of Justice. If you do, your luck will run out, and when it does, we will not hesitate to prosecute you to the full extent of the law,” Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement.

The suspects’ names have not been released.