Four Hilo men were arrested Thursday in connection with nine search warrants served March 1 on seven Big Island establishments and two homes police say harbored illegal gambling operations.
Four Hilo men were arrested Thursday in connection with nine search warrants served March 1 on seven Big Island establishments and two homes police say harbored illegal gambling operations.
According to the police arrest log, Lance Yamada, 54, and Stacey Yamada, 49, owners of Triple 7 Amusements on Manono Street, were booked on suspicion of first- and second-degree promotion of gambling, possessing gambling devices and money laundering.
Sergio Cabal, 48, owner of Reel Fun Amusements in the Waiakea Villas business complex, was booked on suspicion of possessing gambling devices and two counts of second-degree promotion of gambling.
And Jerrimie Pacheco, 41, a co-owner of The Cave on Kilauea Avenue, was booked on suspicion of second-degree promotion of gambling, possession of gambling devices and money laundering.
All were released from custody pending further investigation, police Lt. Mark Farias of Hilo Vice Section said Friday.
“Nobody is charged as of yet,” Farias said. “This is just the formality of arresting them and getting them into the system right now. We’re continuing to investigate and build the case.”
First-degree promotion of gambling is a Class C felony punishable by up to five years imprisonment, while second-degree promotion of gambling and possessing gambling devices are misdemeanors punishable by up to a year in jail. Money laundering is a Class B felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison if the amount is $10,000 or more, and a Class C felony for an amount less than $10,000.
The March sweep in Hilo, Kona, Waimea and Honokaa, which resulted from several months of investigation, netted about $150,000 in cash and resulted in the confiscation of 124 gambling machines in total, police said.
Three people also were arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor gambling at that time. They are 30-year-old Justin D. Alpert and 22-year-old Brenda K. Reynolds of Kailua-Kona, who were both arrested in Kona, and 36-year-old Rodney K. Worley of Honokaa, who was arrested in Waimea.
They also have not been charged.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.