Koreatown gambling houses raided, slot machines seized, LAPD says

Los Angeles police officers served search warrants on suspected Koreatown gambling houses, seizing dozens of slot machines and tens of thousands of dollars in cash, authorities said Tuesday afternoon.

The operation focused on seven privately owned homes and duplexes that allegedly ran gambling operations from midmorning until late at night, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

The homes are located in about a four-square-block area near Olympic Boulevard and Normandie Avenue. The homes had become a nuisance for residents who were forced to put up with loud noises and compete with gamblers for scarce street parking, police said.

“It was just a disruptive influence,” Lt. Mike Oppelt of the LAPD’s Gang and Narcotics Division told The Times.

He said some of the homes had gambling tables but that most of the action involved slot machines.

“Those were the moneymakers,” Oppelt said of the slot machines.

Officers confiscated 35 slot machines and $36,000 in cash. The alleged gambling operations were run by an on-site “gaming manager,” according to the LAPD.

Police said residents lived in the homes and that the illegal activity took place in rooms that had been converted into gambling spaces.

Ten people were cited for illegal possession of a slot machine, which is a misdemeanor, the LAPD said.

The operation involved about 100 officers from the LAPDs’ Asian Crime Unit, Gang and Narcotics Division and Olympic Division who swooped down on the area around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Anyone with information is asked to call Oppelt at (213) 486-5391. After-hours tips can be left at (877) 527-3247.

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Twitter: @LAJourno

robert.lopez@latimes.com