Federal agents dismantle suspected game rooms on Oahu, Maui in early-morning raids

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The federal crackdown on crime tied to illegal game rooms is ramping up with early-morning raids Friday by the FBI and U.S. Marshals Service.

Multiple sources tell Hawaii News Now the locations hit on Oahu and Maui are suspected of having ties to a drug operation.

Agents spent all Friday morning loading up large arcade machines, flat screens and table top games from one suspected game room on Queen Street in Kakaako. Everything was loaded into a large truck.

People who were inside at the time were cuffed and waited next to construction equipment as authorities went through the building.

State Sen. Chris Lee, member of the Senate Judiciary Committee said friends who live in the area have noticed strange activity at the location.

“It wasn’t a surprise this morning I think when everybody looked out their windows and said hey this thing is actually getting busted,” he said.

Game rooms have been the site of recent murders, assaults and robberies and are often raided by county police.

But Lee said they often reopen soon after.

“When you have an activity like this, illegal gaming, usually there’s drugs or money laundering and other stuff that’s associated.”

No one was arrested from the Kakaako location. The FBI said the investigation is ongoing.

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