Legislators are diligently working with police officials to get rid of illegal slots gaming. As laws regarding gambling change throughout the nation, more and more people and businesses are taking chances by trying to get in on slots themselves without the proper licensing. So what is the attraction? The attraction is the lucrative nature of slots gaming. Las Vegas operators recently released research that showed that slots generate over 60-percent of their entire revenue coming in. This means that more than ½ of their entire markets are maintained and developed by the slots. It was amazing to people that slots games are such an integral piece to bring in money for the states. It is one of the finest things about slots games and operators are fully aware of the power the unassuming games have over the gaming public. The dilemma that their money-generating capability is creating a group of people without licenses who are trying to get in on the market illegally. They understand how much slots can generate and want to profit on their own from it. This is creating more and more issues for the cities. Now an additional episode occurred for the beginning of 2011.

A man in Algonquin, Illinois was recently brought up against charges of allegedly stealing 45 slots games. His goal was to sell the games online, for a profit. Knowing how lucrative they are, he assumed that it would be an easy task to market them on an auction-like website and then sort through the offers. Police received a tip when an employee for the company that manufactured the machines recognized it online. It was created by WMS, a gaming company in Wood Dale, Illinois. The man accused of stealing the machines was Leszak Zujko. He is now finding out that crime doesn’t pay. Investigators are concerned that there was an inside accomplice who helped Zujko get the games out of the warehouse. They are still investigating the incident. It will take some time to get to the bottom of, but Zujko is sure to face charges for the theft. This is just another instance where the draw of money gets people in big trouble.

One of the biggest problems in the slots market right now is the development of slots-like games. These are games that look like slots. They have reels, they have paylines and they have winning combinations to them. The games are those that you are going to find in various locations around the world. Businesses use them to bring in additional dollars and increase their popularity. These games aren’t completely like slots games though. The big difference is that they don’t payout cash. Rather, if you win at the games then they pay out free-spins or non-monetary prizes. This is what makes them exempt from the rules that currently govern slots gaming. The problem though is that not every jurisdiction sees the games as legal. Some are moving in and seizing the games as if they were actual slots games. They can do so under the premise that the games are offering people a payout. It isn’t hard for a business to hide payouts from the law. They can easily switch a “prize” up with a cash win of $10. Of course this money is not taxed and the government sees no benefit from allowing the games to continue.

Police forces everywhere are moving in on the games and removing them. Some business owners are not taking it lying down. They know how much fun the games are and how much money they can bring in. consider that a small game in the corner of a business can earn anywhere from $50 to $200 in revenue in any given day. That is extra money for the business to work with and they are not easily going to turn it down. Legislators are trying to crack down on the games. The problem is that the laws for regulating gambling are so sketchy right now that it’s hard to define anything clearly. What is a “slots game”? What is a “reeled game”? What is a “luck based game”? These are all questions that have to be answered before any changes can be made. It will take time, but so far businesses are showing no signs of letting go of their new revenue stream.

Many anti gambling activists have had fuel for their fire lately. There are more instances of crime in the world of slots gaming and they are all making headlines. There have been more than a few instances where police descended upon local convenience stores and gas stations to pull down illegal slot machines. The truth is that the games are profitable. If a convenience store can run just one $0.50-per spin game for an hour, that can bring them on average $50 per hour. Multiplied by twenty-four hours a day, and that is $1,200 in passive income. Remember that slot machines for the most part require little to no maintenance. You can set a machine up, and let it bring in the revenue with little cost to your business. This is one of the huge draws of owners. They know that the machines perform and can contribute to their overall revenue stream considerably. There is one problem though: without proper licensing, they are illegal. This is putting police forces at odds because they know they have to do a lot to keep things legal. They have to get a tip on the games. It isn’t always easy. Normally if people are traveling through a state and stop at an off-road convenience store they aren’t likely to report illegal activity…especially something as innocent as a slots game. Are they going to call to make sure the machine is within code? Probably not.

So police are left to hope for anonymous tips from locals and to catch the games on their own. Some states have put together task forces to aid in finding the games. They work closely with the communities involved to make sure that no one is in danger of being taken. Part of the problem with the slots games that are illegally operating is that not only do they break the law, but they also put players in danger. There are no regulators to these machines so if a business owner rigs them to never pay out, who will know? No one. Players are on their own with these games and easily lose a lot of money on them. Anti-gambling activists continue to push for change and are hoping that they can come up with the proper rules. They want to use this illegal activity to prove their case too. The issue of gambling is so popular though that completely eliminating it isn’t likely every to happen.

Sometimes the money that slot games offer is too much to resist. Sure they are fun games and have huge payouts, but for some people that isn’t enough. Recently Andre Michael Nester has been accused of bilking Las Vegas area slots games out of over $400,000 in payouts. Initially it was though that he was just scamming the city, but soon it was uncovered that he actually was a much bigger con artist than originally thought. He is now facing over $1.3-million in charges and fines from the state of Nevada. Authorities are alleging that he is the leader behind a global slot machine scamming system that has taken hundreds of casinos for thousands of dollars. In this scam, Nestor approached casinos from the “high-roller” stance. He claimed to be a money-maker who wanted to just game with his accomplice/body guard Kerry Laverde. When they got into the casinos they would use their expertise at slots to steal from them. There is a “soft” option with the games and Nester is an expert at finding it and then using a series of keystrokes to “trick” the machine into giving a big payout. He did this numerous times and ended up winning huge dollars. For example, in just three months of 2009, he was able to scam the same slots parlor on 14 different occasions and take over $400,000.

Right now Nestor is claiming that he was not doing anything illegal. Rather, he states that he has a skill equitable to blackjack card counting. He claims that his “skill” allowed him to get the big wins time and time again. Though this is a good argument, most likely it will not hold up in any court because of the fact that games are built on a random number generating system. There is no external way of influencing that, or predicting it. No skill or strategy would allow any gamer to predict or direct any kind of win. The only way to “make” a machine payout is to use some electronic means of bilking it. This is exactly what Nestor and Laverde are being accused of. Laverde chose a plea bargain, but Nestor is holding to his argument of having special “slots skills” that no one else on the face of the earth has ever heard of.

There are more problems with slots gaming. This time it was a Texaco Food Mart in Arlington that saw problems with the games. City police descended on the location and seized four slot machines that were operating illegally within the food mart. The problem was that the machines were known to be paying out cash—something that is illegal without regulation—to people wagering on them. Over $15,000 was also taken in the raid. This was a sign of how slots gaming is becoming too popular for businesses to pass up. Despite being illegal, more and more convenience stores and gas stations are making a move to bring in the games. They are highly lucrative—that is no secret. The games bring in millions of dollars to casinos every month. Naturally business owners assume, “Why shouldn’t we take advantage of the games too?” An unassuming game can bring in a lot of extra passive income for a business. There are a lot of issues though:

• The games are illegal. You can’t just operate a slots game without a license and approval from the state, city and county. Each one of these three entities wants their own cut of the action and if a business sets them up, none of them are getting it. This is cause for action by authorities and once they find out about the activity, you can expect they will take care of it swiftly.
• The games can be a scam. With no regulation, who knows if the owners tamper with the games? A game that has a payout percentage on it is regulated and made to work fairly. Without any third-party regulation it is easy for games to be set to never pay out.
• If you are scammed, who do you call? If you have a problem with an illegal game, there is nothing you can do but report the location to authorities. They are going to most likely seize the machines and money, but you are still not going to get your share of winnings. If the game was operated illegally, you are out of luck.

This is the latest problem with illegal slots gaming, but don’t expect it to be the last by any means.

If you or family members are avid slots gamers, you may have wondered if you or they have a problem. This is a reality in the market today. With the rise in slots games and slots parlors, it is difficult to manage the problem and many experts are saying the door to addiction is inevitably opening. If you are concerned about compulsive slots gaming then here are some signs to watch out for:

• Emotional insecurity. Normally a compulsive slots gamer, or gambler on any game for that matter, is emotionally stable only when playing games. Some Gamblers Anonymous members stated that they felt like they “belonged” in the casino when they were wagering. The slots parlor can offer a dose of stability for gamers who are out of control, while other places outside of it are difficult to find the same stability in.
• Immaturity. One common characteristic of compulsive slots gamers is that they want the “good life” without putting any time or energy into building it. A lot of gamers seem to want to easy dollar and they see gambling at the slots as the way to do it. This of course is highly unreliable, but that is where their logic skills are not as sharp as they should be.
• Unwillingness to accept reality. Some compulsive slots players go to their parlors for one reason: to escape. They would rather pull the reels than face reality of their lives—no matter how painful that is. Even if they are losing everything, they will still ignore it and find comfort in the slots parlors they frequent. They could be facing repossessions, creditors, foreclosures, loss of family, etc, but they still will want to get to the slots parlors.

Any one or combination of the above can signify a serious gambling problem. Consider that the number of slots parlors is scheduled to increase tremendously in coming years now that legislators realize how lucrative the games are. They know that a good slots initiative can bring in millions of dollars every month. This may be a surefire way to bring in more addicts and more problems to communities that are not prepared.

There is still a problem in the market for underage slots gamers to get past casino doors. It is better than it used to be, but problems are still arising. The latest occurrence was at Mount Airy Casino Resort in Monroe County. The location allowed a fifteen and a sixteen year old gamer to come in and play. According to the Pennsylvania Race Horse Development and Gaming Act, it is unlawful for anyone under the age of twenty-one to wager, play, or try to play a slot machine or table game at any state licensed location for gambling. Mount Airy Casino Resort broke this law and not for the first time. This is the second infraction for the same issue and it is becoming a problem for the casino. Plus, back on March of the past year the casino was fined a total of $100,000 for violating the same ban six different occasions. Obviously something has to be done with their laws and security systems to make sure this doesn’t happen again. This time the casino was charged a fine by the court of $70,000 and last time it was $100,000. Paying out $170,000 in less-than a one-year period is going to be a problem for the casino on many different levels. There are a lot of gaming companies trying to push their ways into the market and if one casino proves to be unable to manage their location, they could be asked to vacate. There are plenty of other gaming directors ready to move in and take over. They would be more than happy to take advantage of the huge dollars that gaming brings in.

It could jeopardize their licensing altogether if they aren’t more careful. It could bring bad press to the casino and cause people to not want to game there. It could cause anti-gambling activists to target the location for their arguments. Overall it is a bad idea to not shore up rules and find ways to avoid breaking them in the future. Only time will tell what Pennsylvania is going to do beyond fining the casino, but if they continue to break the laws, more strict and decisive action will be close behind.

The world of slots gaming is still seeing illegal gaming activity and this could add further fuel to the fire of anti-gambling activists’ arguments. Anti-gambling organizations believe that slots and gambling’s legalization is a problem waiting to happen. They believe that the legalization of gambling will only bring in more crime, corruption and money laundering. Their biggest argument is that the cost of “fixing”, or at minimum managing, these problems could eat away at any revenue states bring in. For example, if a slots parlor brings in $10-million in one month but has a significant rise in crime, a good portion of that money could have to be put towards shoring up police forces, building task forces directly focused on gambling activities and managing addictions. That $10-million in revenue could quickly turn into $2 or $3 with the added cost of managing ancillary issues. Is it worth it? Would the cost make it worth it to bring in legalized slots gaming? What about other problems that could be created like addictions? Research shows that slots gaming is one of the most addictive gaming activities out there and could create a market of addicts quickly. The state would have to increase its number of addiction centers where they can find help. This too would be at a significant cost to the market.

In Singapore there was more illegal activity. It seemed that at the Marina Bay Sands men were accused of bringing in fake chips to a casino with the intention of trading them in for legal chips and then cashing them out. This is another problem with gaming—managing inside casinos and slots parlors. If people are going to push for more illegal activities it is going to put more of a financial strain on gaming companies. They have to shore p their security systems and be more careful with what to do to keep illegal activities out. This again is another cost to the casino and money out of the state’s pockets. Over time things should level out, but the reality is that if there are casinos, there are going to be people trying to take advantage of them. There is just too much money at the slots parlors for thieves to resist.

With the rise in slots gaming throughout the US, there inevitably is going to be a rise in criminal activities surrounding them. The days of using “slugs” is long gone. This was when gamers carved fake coins out of wood and sued them as money in the machines. When they got a payout, they were all the richer because they spent nothing on the actual game, much to the chagrin of the owners of the games. Now there are different ways of thievery. Games are no longer mechanical so cheating them is not easy. It is still relatively easy to cheat an unaware patron. Some thieves are stealing from machines by waiting for people to look away and then they cash in the machine for them. Others try to steak the tickets from games and then cash those out. Some people even try to steal tokens and then cash them in. These are all tactics used by thieves, but they are more often than not, ineffective.

Thieves discount the fact that the casino has a high-tech security system to watch everyone on the casino floor. If you are touching your nose, the security team knows about it! Casinos today put millions of dollars into their security to protect their huge revenues. They don’t want to be in danger of thieves taking over their spoils and have the money to stop them. Also, if a person is caught stealing at a slots parlor the casino most likely is going to press charges. It is a sign of how strict they are going to be with gamers who want to steal. Plus, the chips at a casino are always tracked. This makes it impossible to steal tokens and then cash them in. Sure you could try, but the casino will eventually know and then list the token as stolen. Once someone comes in to try to cash it, they are going to be sadly mistaken and led to jail instead. It is difficult to scam a casino and why try? Just have fun at the games and then monitor your own losses. It could be that fun is the thing they are selling more than the big payout deal, so why not just take advantage of it?

Illegal slots gaming activities seem to be on the rise. Whether or not that is solely because of the increase in games in the country, or because people are seeing how lucrative the games are has yet to be determined. Regardless, the rise in illegal gaming is a reason for caution among legislators. They are concerned that the anti-gambling activists’ notion that this would happen is coming true. One of the main arguments anti-gambling activists have is that an increase in gambling activity will cause people to inevitably try to carry out their own illegal activities. This could be true. One by one all over the country states and cities are having problems with illegal slot machines. People are posting the machines to bring in money without getting the proper approval needed to operate them. Now another city is having problems with the issue. This time it is Marion Ohio that is having problems. It seems that the Marion Skill Games location is where the illegal slots were recovered.

Part of the problem with the games is that if a cash prize is awarded, then they are illegal. If the prize is an item, they could change the decision though. Many gaming companies don’t know this or they don’t want to—either way they end up breaking the law and having problems as a result. To add insult to injury though the police department also found a second location called Star Skill Games where there were the same types of games. Illegal slots are becoming a problem in the market. More and more companies are seeing how lucrative the games are and are trying to bring them in for their financial benefits. This is a great idea, but without the proper legal authority to do so, the businesses are risking hefty fines, bad press and even imprisonment of the owners and managers. The price is too much to pay and operators should think twice. They can have the games, but stay away from money-based returns. This may solve some of the issues at hand and help gaming companies to keep on operating legally and without having to worry about any problems.