Illegal Gambling Cafes to be Closed in Marion County

Blurring the line for profit is what many places are trying to do throughout Florida. These places are illegally running in the back rooms of cafes and restaurants, and do not have the legal licensing and other necessary paperwork needed to run legally. Often the signs say, 'Fish Games' or 'Arcade' internet cafes, but these are not actual places where you can play these arcade games or other games, but rather, play illegal gambling games to win (and lose) money.

Many people wonder if these are even legal, and the Sheriff for Marion County stated that they are not.

Marion County Has Shut Down Numerous Cafes

The odds that these cafes are actually legal are very low because many of them might promise the ability to use the computers, internet, or even play games that do not have you actually use money but this is often not the case. In Tallahassee when they were trying to shut down these illegal cafes, they had a problem. Many of the places, like Chuck E Cheese where you basically get prizes for playing games of skill would have issues running because this is riding the fine line of whether or not this is 'gambling'.

This brought about the rule stating that if it is a game of chance, it is illegal but if you are playing a game of skill then it is legal. This is where many of the cafes think they have the upper hand because they are offering games that are said to be games of skill, not chance.

The county has already found numerous businesses running illegally, even with the loophole that makes it difficult to tell who is actually running illegally.

Marion County Sheriff Looking to Close Even More

The Sheriff for the county is looking to expand on this and make sure to close down even more businesses that are operating illegally. This is something that can be difficult and costly to do, but in hopes of getting more information on who might be running illegally, it might cut the process and costs down.

Though these cafes may never actually shut down completely, it is in hopes that those who are running illegally are brought to light as they come up. As of right now, many of these Fish Games and Arcades are being looked into and have to go through regular checks to ensure that they are legally running as they should be.