More on the Aces raid (2)
by Dan Michalski, Jun 25, 2006 | 2:42 am
Some finer details, from a reliable firsthand source:
- 12-15 SWAT guys, carrying M16s and MP5s. Most of them were professional and courteous in their show of overwhelming force, but there were “a couple macho SWAT-type assholes.”
- 15-20 more uniformed officers followed behind them.
- 3 or 4 film-crew girls. Two of them were kinda cute.
- The tourney was recently broken down to 7 tables of 9 right before the bust.
- Upon being searched, some players had to put their entire bankrolls onto the table. Even those with a few thousand or more were allowed to keep all their money … unlike the case in the McKinney raid. (This might suggest the cops were going out of their way to not do anything that might jeopardize the credibility of whatever case the DA may or may not bring.)
- The police had a computer-generated form, specifically designed for poker room raids. It was a chart of a poker table, with seats 1-10 numbered correctly … and as they went around ID’ing each player, they noted the individual’s position at the table and possibly the size of his or her chipstack.
- At least 1 Rounder Club dealer was arrested.
Seriously, all this should make for really good TV.
ALT HED: True Texas Poker?
Jason says:
June 25th, 2006 at 2:55am
I was there too, it was kind an exhilarating experience to say the least. I also had about 600$ in my pocket that I was more worried about them confiscating then the fine I knew I was about to receive. My other chief complaint: I was doing very well and had 36K in chips! I’ll be following how this plays out.
DanM says:
June 25th, 2006 at 3:43am
Action junky.
texas tupac says:
June 25th, 2006 at 5:29am
this is one f—ed up country.
Aces says:
June 25th, 2006 at 10:14am
If anyone has any questions they would like to passed on to the the mgmt, send them to actiondonkey@yahoo!SP@M!.com. Former emails addies are either down or may not be in control of the person you are trying to reach.
Ed says:
June 25th, 2006 at 10:25am
I am just glad you folks were playing poker and not out killing old people/raping nuns/dealing drugs to minors/name your crime here.
Ed
david says:
June 25th, 2006 at 10:47am
exhilarating??? you just got robbed by Dallas SWAT with a m-16 or ar-15 pointed to your head for making money for a tv show… what a donkey….
slyther says:
June 26th, 2006 at 12:14pm
I”m sorry to hear about what happened in Dallas. Up here in WA state our representatives recently passed a bill making online gambling illegal. We also have a state lottery, etc. But more importantly we have licensed card rooms and tribal gaming, both of which have contributed to the State Senator that sponsored the bill. YOu can read bout it in the cardplayer forum here: http://forums.cardplayer.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=37990
Joe says:
June 26th, 2006 at 1:31pm
Don’t be an ass David. Jason is right, it was exhilerating. I know because I was there too and that doesn’t make either of us donkeys.
It was VERY relieving to discover it was only Dallas Swat with guns and not some nuts trying to rob the place.
The whole thing was just too convenient for the TV show in my opinion.
A complete waste of the time and talents of these brave men in the swat team. No doubt their time could be better spent elsewhere.
Tim says:
June 26th, 2006 at 10:27pm
So I’m thinking an evening playing some B&M would be nice……. I had to cancel going to New Orleans this weekend, but the girls still went to party and rabble-rouse on Bourbon St, so I’m free to be out for the evening…. Anyway, Winstar seemed a bit blah so I decided to head to Dallas for some underground action at one of the well-known spots. They were hosting a big monthly $200+$20 event plus the cash games so the place should be packed. I got there just in time to sign up for a $30 tourny, sit down for a few minutes….get my chips………
…..and have the Dallas SWAT team along with the A&E film crew come rushing in like a flood and bust us all!! Turns out this club was a little too well known and DPD had been scoping it out for some time. I tell you, it was a sphincter clenching moment for about a second, until it clicked in that they were cops and not robbers. WHEW!!! Was there for about an hour as they booked the dealers and owners and made their way around ticketing all the players. I’m glad I only dropped $30 on a tourney instead of sitting in the $1-$2 NL which would have cost me $300.
It was an interesting experience. The Police were very professional, calm, and in complete control. I watched the whole thing in a very detached manner for a while, then this producer from A&E came around and asked if anyone would like to sign releases for the show. I said hell yeah my kids love that show She asked some questions, not a real interview or anything, but they got a ton of footage so it’ll be interesting to see the show down the road from their perspective.
Ya know what, it’s still early… Winstar isn’t THAT far….
SDiva says:
June 27th, 2006 at 10:42pm
My goodness, I’m certainly happy that the SWAT team was out busting those viscious poker players rather than catching the murderers, rapists, arsonists (especially this last week, oh my!), child kidnappers, drug dealers, etc.
I for one feel SOOOO much safer, yet so bored with nothing to do…perhaps I’ll have to go out and cause mischief because I don’t have a game to play indoors. Is this how children end up in gangs and doing drugs?
I weep for our future.
Pokerati | Texas hold’em blog » Blog Archive » Arboretum Game Gets Pinched says:
October 28th, 2006 at 5:29am
[…] The details of the bust are a little hazy, as I got this info second- and third-hand. But I don’t think it was like the Aces raid in Dallas with an armored SWAT team, TV cameras, and machine guns … and I’m pretty sure no one got arrested or even ticketed. (Can anyone out there provide confirmation or further info?) From what I understand, the cops simply became aware of the game when residents noticed a lot of foot traffic in and out of the first-floor, two-bedroom pad … and, fearing the occupants were drug dealers, alerted the cops. Two (?) APD officers showed up one day (last week? the week before?), knocked on the door, and had a chat with the proprietors — telling them it was time to shut down. Simple enough … and very little paperwork. […]
steve says:
November 18th, 2006 at 12:35am
Jackies was busted tonight…I was there…Dallas SWAT kicking in wall of glass with jackhammers…mask…automatic weapons…the whole nine yards. News cameras waiting as I left with my ticket asking if I had anything to say for the camera. I said know threw my jacket over my head and walked off…but I did shout back…”guess it’s a lot safer to bust a poker game than to raid something dangerous and catch some real criminals”. So sad…so true. In my humble opinion, the driving “force” behind these raids is not the law. It’s the Oklahoma and probably even the Louisianna Poker rooms putting money into some politicians pocket! That’s the real crime.
Steve
Pokerati | Texas hold’em blog » Blog Archive » Firsthand Account: Jackie’s says:
November 18th, 2006 at 6:29am
[…] From Steve, a Pokerati commenter: Jackies was busted tonight…I was there…Dallas SWAT kicking in wall of glass with jackhammers…mask…automatic weapons…the whole nine yards. News cameras waiting as I left with my ticket asking if I had anything to say for the camera. I said know threw my jacket over my head and walked off…but I did shout back…”guess it’s a lot safer to bust a poker game than to raid something dangerous and catch some real criminals”. So sad…so true. In my humble opinion, the driving “force” behind these raids is not the law. It’s the Oklahoma and probably even the Louisiana Poker rooms putting money into some politicians pocket! That’s the real crime. […]