Port St. Lucie - Wednesday May 15, 2024: Last Friday, May 10th, at about 5 PM, the Port St. Lucie Police Department’s Special Investigations Division and SWAT Team, along with the Florida Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco, and Port St. Lucie Code Compliance, served four simultaneous search warrants on four different businesses accused of operating the gambling game known as Bolita, which is illegal in Florida.
In all, five people were arrested at the four different businesses that were offering the game.
Bolita is a type of lottery where small, numbered balls are placed into a bag, which is then shaken-up. Gamblers are given a ticket after placing their bet on which numbered ball will be withdrawn from the bag. The winning numbers are based on the legitimate New York lotto process but are in no way affiliated with the New York lotto.
This type of gambling game is considered a - self-regulated money collecting and distribution process - which is not recognized as a legal form of gambling in Florida.
The investigation began two months ago when a concerned citizen came forward and provided information about illegal gambling happening at four different businesses in Port St. Lucie. Those businesses are:
- Cale Marketplace at 751 NW Airoso Blvd.
- Malaika Caribbean Restaurant at 658 SW Port St. Lucie Blvd.
- Frienz Mini Mart at 920 SW Bayshore Blvd.
- Balla Unisex Salon at 1354 SW Bayshore Blvd.
The Special Investigations Division enlisted the help of an undercover detective from West Palm Beach Police Department. This undercover detective conducted several gambling transactions at each of the four locations.
The investigation revealed that each business had a separate gambling operation that did not appear to be related to the others as each operation appeared to be independent of the other.
During the execution of the four search warrants, approximately $10,000 was seized.
Those arrested during the execution of the search warrants were:
1. Bryant D Francisco from the Cale Marketplace, who has since bonded out of the St. Lucie County Jail, for the following:
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE 1ST VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE SUBSQ OFF
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE 1ST VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE 1ST OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE 1ST VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE 1ST OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
2. Josiane LaPointe from the Malaika Caribbean Restaurant, who has since bonded out of the St. Lucie County Jail, for the following:
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE 1ST VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE 1ST OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
3. Big John Petion from the Malaika Caribbean Restaurant, who has since bonded out of the St. Lucie County Jail, for the following:
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE SUBSQ VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF SUBSQ OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE 1ST OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE SUBSQ VIOLATION
4. Revelyn Tejada-Serrata from the Frienz Mini Mart, who has since bonded out of the St. Lucie County Jail, for the following:
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE SUBSQ VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE SUBSQ OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE SUBSQ VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE SUBSQ OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE SUBSQ VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE SUBSQ OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE SUBSQ VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE SUBSQ OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE SUBSQ VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE SUBSQ OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
5. Chimy Louis Isemero from the Balla Unisex Salon, who has since bonded out of the St. Lucie County Jail, for the following:
- LOTTERY-SELL OR TRANSMIT TICKET OR SHARE 1ST VIOLATION
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-OPERATE GAMES OF CHANCE 1ST OFFENSE
- LOTTERY-OPERATING-SET UP PROMOTE CONDUCT FOR MONEY
The criminal investigation is ongoing.
The Code Compliance investigation has revealed that each property has three primary violations associated to the illegal gambling, unpermitted uses of the property, and business tax receipt violations. At this time, the maximum allowable a special magistrate could impose per violation would be $15,000, totaling $45,000 in fines, per property.
The Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco discovered that the Cale Marketplace was selling alcoholic beverages under the previous owner’s license, so they were issued an official notice to cease sales of any alcoholic beverages until a new license could be obtained.
