In Ohio, a news station’s hidden camera investigation found unlicensed storefront casinos in Medina, Akron and Mentor-on-the-Lake are paying out cash prizes. The establishments claim to offer legal games of skill,
which are legal in Ohio.
In fact, the Medina venue’s name is the E-Z Win Games of Skill. The attendant there explained the slot-like games, similar to those found at a casino, are “pretty easy. Just press a button and play. And if you win, I’ll be over to cash you out. People win big all the time. I’ve seen someone win $12,000.”
The attendant explained the slot machines “are set like the casinos, completely random.” He said each game had a twist that made them different. “When you win you have to slide a little bar, that’s what makes it legal. That’s the skill,” the attendant said.
Ohio Casino Control Commission Director of Skill Games Andromeda Morrison said, “In reality, what these storefront casinos are offering is illegal slot machines.” She said games of skill are licensed by the state, including games like Skee-Ball or claw games. Skill games only can offer prizes, such as gas cards, but never cash. Morrison said, “If any device is paying out cash and it’s not at an authorized casino or racino in Ohio, then they are doing so in violation of the law.”
Morrison found no records of a skill game license for the establishments the news station visited. She noted if there are problems at an unlicensed establishment, there is little the state can do. “Many of the complaints we receive from Ohioans are that they’ve gone into an illegal casino, they’ve won a purported jackpot and the operator has refused to pay the full amount or the amount at all, and there is very little recourse,” Morrison said.
She stated, “This industry has been very good about finding unique and creative ways to try and obscure from local government and the state, the true nature of what they are doing.”
The new station also found over the last four years, at least 88 skill game centers across Ohio—not including the three storefront operations they visited−are being investigated or have been shut down. A federal case is pending against operators of a Canton skill game casino, accused of money laundering and tax fraud.
