Illegal Gambling Raids Carried Out in Pennsylvania by State Attorney General
Posted on: May 14, 2025, 08:24h.
Last updated on: May 14, 2025, 09:33h.
- Pennsylvania’s top law enforcement official says over 400 unregulated slots were seized in March
- The raids by carried out in Western Pennsylvania
- The legality of skill games continues to be determined in Harrisburg
Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday says hundreds of illegal gambling machines from dozens of businesses in Western Pennsylvania were seized by state law enforcement in March.
Sunday alleges that the gaming devices were billed as skill games but had no skill component like the ones commonly branded Pennsylvania Skill that continue to also face legal scrutiny. The state’s top law enforcement officer says the machines seized by police didn’t require players to identify winning paylines, which is typically the claimed skill factor in the countless unregulated skill terminals that continue to operate in thousands of small businesses across the commonwealth.
These devices were essentially slot machines dressed up as skill games,” said Sunday. “I commend our partners at the Pennsylvania State Police for helping disband a large-scale operation that netted a tremendous amount of illegal gambling profits.”
Sunday filed felony corrupt organizations charges against Buffalo Skills Games, Inc., and J.J. Amusement, Inc., for distributing the games. Both companies are owned by John F. Conley, who has prior federal illegal gambling convictions.
Array of Businesses Participated
Sunday’s release on the illegal gambling raids carried out by the Pennsylvania State Police reveals that various local businesses allowed Conley’s machines to operate within their premises. They included bars, gas stations, and convenience stores in Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Cambria, Crawford, Indiana, Somerset, Venango, Erie, Washington, Armstrong, and Westmoreland counties.
Some of the businesses where the gambling machines were seized were the 777 Game Room, Lucky Billiards, and The Music Studio, all in Armstrong County. In Westmoreland, home to Live! Casino Pittsburgh in Greensburg, a Category 4 mini-casino with almost 750 slot machines and 40 live dealer table games, Woodpeckers Pub & Grub was found to have illegal slots.
A person in Pennsylvania found guilty of a felony corrupt organizations charge faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $25K fine.
Skill Saga Drags On
Pennsylvania’s highly regulated and taxed casino industry opposes skill games, slot-like games that closely resemble casino slots but differ slightly in that a player’s payout rate can be impacted by their play.
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court is reviewing whether claims by skill game manufacturers and distributors — namely, Pace-O-Matic and Miele Manufacturing — that their products don’t fall under the scope of the state Gaming Act because they are not solely games of chance have merit. The state’s high court is expected to rule on the highly controversial matter in the coming months.
Small businesses say the machines have provided critical supplemental revenue that has offset higher costs and allowed them to avoid job layoffs. Pace-O-Matic and Miele are seeking to be regulated and taxed.
Gov. Josh Shapiro (D), despite calls from the state’s legal gaming industry, which delivered Harrisburg more than $2.66 billion in taxes last year, supports providing skill games a legal framework. In February, during his budget address to the General Assembly, Shapiro said that revenue from skill games could help better fund the state’s poorest schools and public transit agencies, increase student-teach stipends, and create a standardized tuition rate for cyber charter schools.
Shapiro estimates that by regulating and taxing skill games revenue at 52%, Harrisburg could receive hundreds of millions of dollars in new tax money.
Last Comment ( 1 )
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