LISBON- State agents removed two electronic gambling devices from the Hunt Club in Salem last week and filed gambling-related criminal charges against the owner and one of his employees.
Hunt Club owner James H. Miller, 50, of 2075 Valley Road, Salem, was charged with operating a gambling house, gambling-acquire, possess, control or operate a gambling device and possession of criminal tools, all first-degree misdemeanors.
His employee, Mark Fowler, 42, of 1364 Jefferson St., Salem, was charged with exchange of noncash prize for playing skill-based machine or skilled based amusement machine prohibited, also a misdemeanor.
Both Miller and Fowler
are scheduled to face arraignment Monday morning in Columbiana County Municipal Court, where the charges were filed.
Julie Hinds, public information officer for the Ohio Investigative Unit of the Ohio Department of Public Safety, said administrative violations were also issued against the liquor permit for the establishment.
Those citations include two counts of gambling-acquire, possess, control or operate a gambling device, two counts of gambling-electronic video gambling device, two counts of gambling-operating a gambling house and two counts of gambling-recklessly permitting public gaming.
Hinds explained that once the criminal side of the case is completed, the citations will be presented to the Ohio Liquor Control Commission. Penalties could include fines, suspension or revocation of the liquor license.
Agents from the Ohio Investigative Unit, accompanied by Salem Police officers, executed a search warrant against the business at 188 Railroad Street on April 29. Evidence removed included two electronic video gambling machines labeled "$10 Fruit," three $2 fuel cards, 13 $10 fuel cards and $6 from one of the machines.
The investigation into the alleged illegal gambling began in March after an Ohio Investigative agent visited the Hunt Club in February to deliver two administrative violation notices related to alleged drug trafficking at the liquor establishment, the search warrant affidavit said. While there, the agent noticed the gambling machines.
According to the affidavit, which was filed in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court to secure the search warrant issued by Judge C. Ashley Pike, the agent returned March 13 and saw two machines lit and operational.
He returned undercover on April 3, played the machines and won skill tickets, which he turned in to Fowler and received gas cards in exchange, the affidavit said.
Mary Ann Greier can be reached at mgreier@salemnews.net
