Tuesday, November 14, 2006

City police and federal law enforcement drew a royal flush Saturday when
they bet the house on a raid that folded an underground poker game. Six
months after learning that high-stakes, invitation only Texas Hold 'Em games
might be occurring in Warren, local police - with the help of federal
authorities - raided a Woodland Street N.E. building early Saturday morning,
finding and taking a large amount of cash and poker-related items. ''We
received information about some gambling going on over time, so we conducted
an investigation,'' said Warren police detective Jeffrey Hoolihan, who led
the investigation. Hoolihan said the investigation is continuing. It's
unclear at this point what charges may be filed. No one was arrested
Saturday. That investigation brought police and the FBI to Cox Contracting
Inc., 715 Woodland St. N.E., where they found some 13 players bellied up to
two tables, some drinking beers and playing Texas Hold 'Em, a version of
poker that has gained immense popularity in recent years due in part to
television coverage of high money tournaments across the United States. The
owner of Cox Construction did not return a message seeking comment. Warren
Municipal Judge Thomas Gysegem signed the warrant Thursday. The raid
happened at 1:05 a.m. Saturday.

According to the office of Attorney General Jim Petro, Texas Hold 'em is
considered a game of chance, defined by Ohio law as a ''game in which a
player gives anything of value in the hope of gain, the outcome of which is
determined largely by chance.'' The good news for many players is that home
games are perfectly legal as long as the house doesn't take a cut and any
money bet is paid out to the winners.

The bad news in this case, police say, is that the operator was taking a cut
of the money bet and charging a buy-in for players to participate.

According to police, the buy-in to participate was $100 between 7 and 9 p.m.
and $200 after 9 p.m. Police believe the invitation-only game was dealt held
on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and one day during the week, and, since
May, between 50 and 60 different players participated.

Police seized two tables, a number of chips and cards, more than $15,000 in
cash and other gambling-related items, Hoolihan said.