GALVESTON — Eight people were charged in connection with a bookmaking scheme that led to the seizure of $1,346, authorities said Friday.
The gambling raid was the second in as many weeks. However, police didn’t immediately say whether the Nov. 15 and Tuesday operations were related.
Galveston vice and narcotics officers arrived at 4:55 p.m. Tuesday at a house in the 3700 block of Winnie and reported seeing gambling activity.
When officers approached the house, people started running out the back door, Capt. Jeff Heyse, a Galveston police spokesman, said.
The officers captured the fleeing people and seized betting slips and $1,346 during the raid, which resulted in misdemeanor charges against eight people.
Two men were charged with keeping a gambling place, two others were charged with possession of gambling paraphernalia, and the remaining four — including one woman with four outstanding municipal warrants — were charged with gambling, Heyse said.
The raid was the second such bookmaking sting in the county in as many weeks. On Nov. 15, officers made raids in Galveston and Texas City. Police timed the simultaneous raids one hour before that Sunday’s slate of professional football games. Those raids led to the arrests of 38 people on gambling charges and the seizure of $32,600.
The Nov. 15 raids were the result of complaints from nearby residents reporting suspicious activity, Galveston police said.
Galveston police asked the public to call 409-765-3672 with illegal gambling tips.
