SAN ANTONIO – Bexar County deputies raided a suspected illegal gambling operation Thursday at a location authorities previously busted in 2022, Sheriff Javier Salazar said.
Deputies with the sheriff’s Organized Crime Division found approximately 50 working gaming machines around noon in the 300 block of East Harding Boulevard, near Roosevelt Avenue.
Two people were arrested during the operation — one for methamphetamine possession and another on an outstanding theft warrant. Three others at the location were released because no gambling had actually begun.
The San Antonio Fire Department assisted deputies in accessing a safe containing cash, Salazar said, though the total amount seized has not yet been determined.
The sheriff’s office made multiple arrests and seized more than $30,000 and about 100 machines during the 2022 operation, according to Salazar and previous KSAT reporting.
While the property is being operated by different tenants, it is still owned by the same person who owned it in 2022. At the time, Salazar said deputies believed the property owner may have been tied to the operation.
Salazar said Thursday that the property owner could face charges of engaging in organized criminal activity.
“Going out on a limb, but my guess is that the owner realized it’s a lucrative business,” Salazar said. “Probably saw it as an opportunity.”
While possessing gaming machines is not illegal, Salazar explained that payouts cannot exceed 10 times the bet amount.
The investigation remains ongoing.
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