{"id":1020,"date":"2025-09-11T17:06:54","date_gmt":"2025-09-11T17:06:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/?p=1020"},"modified":"2025-09-29T12:08:55","modified_gmt":"2025-09-29T12:08:55","slug":"seminole-tribe-reminds-floridians-about-states-illegal-gambling-problem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/11\/seminole-tribe-reminds-floridians-about-states-illegal-gambling-problem\/","title":{"rendered":"Seminole Tribe Reminds Floridians About State\u2019s Illegal Gambling Problem"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li><strong>The Seminole Tribe is encouraging the public to avoid unregulated gambling outfits<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Florida has an illegal gambling problem, with slots parlors masquerading as arcades<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>The Seminoles are the only legal operator of Las Vegas-like casinos in Florida<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The Seminole Tribe of Florida is urging Floridians to shun unregulated gambling businesses.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_362346\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-362346\" data-style=\"width: 858px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-post-thumbnail-858xAUTO wp-image-362346 lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"Seminole Casinos Florida gambling laws\" width=\"858\" height=\"572\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/shutterstock_2442534771-858x572-1.jpg\"><figcaption>An aerial view of the entrance to Seminole Hard Rock Hotel &amp; Casino Hollywood in Florida. The Seminole Tribe is reminding Floridians to avoid gambling at unregulated, illegal slot parlors and arcades. (Image: Shutterstock)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">In a <a href=\"https:\/\/seminole.hardrock.com\/newsroom\/2025\/09\/illegal-gambling-letter\">note<\/a> from Seminole Gaming COO David Hoenemeyer, the tribe is reminding residents and visitors to Florida that the state&#8217;s many unregulated gambling businesses, which often bill themselves as arcades, internet cafes, and slot parlors, are illegal and shouldn&#8217;t be patronized.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"main-blockquote\">\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">These facilities are illegal and unregulated. They don&#8217;t pay taxes, and they prey on people who are unaware of their very real dangers. Numerous investigations have shown they often refuse to pay out jackpots to hapless customers. Many don&#8217;t even program their slot machines to deliver fair returns,&#8221; Hoenemeyer wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Through its subsidiary, Seminole Gaming, the federally recognized tribe owns and operates six brick-and-mortar casinos across the Sunshine State. The Seminoles are the only tribe in Florida holding a Class III gaming compact with the state government that allows its Hard Rock and Seminole-branded casinos to operate Las Vegas-like slot machines and live-dealer table games, including house-banked games like blackjack, craps, roulette, and baccarat.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The Seminoles additionally maintain a monopoly on online sports betting through the tribe&#8217;s Hard Rock Bet Sportsbook.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Slots Legal in Certain Counties<\/b><\/span><span class=\"s1\"><b>\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Outside of the Seminoles&#8217; six casinos, legal slot machines can be found inside racinos and parimutuel wagering businesses in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. Other than that, all slots are unregulated and illegal across the state.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><strong><span class=\"s1\">The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians, the only other federally recognized tribe in Florida, operates slot-like electronic bingo machines at its tribal casinos on its reservations in Miami and in the Everglades.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Drive off tribal lands or leave Miami-Dade and Broward, and the odds are good that you&#8217;ll soon come across an arcade that offers gaming terminals seemingly lifted from a Seminole or Las Vegas casino floor.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"callout\">\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><i>Casino.org <\/i>has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/florida-caretaker-of-elderly-couple-arrested-gambling-hub\/\">reported<\/a> extensively on Florida&#8217;s illegal gambling problem. But because even the few business owners who are prosecuted for running unregulated gambling outfits are met with only misdemeanor penalties, the Florida Gaming Control Commission (FGCC), police, and others seeking to rid the state of illicit gambling say the financial reward outweighs the legal risks.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">In April, a bill to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/florida-bill-would-elevate-illegal-gaming-convictions-to-felonies\/\">strengthen penalties<\/a> from misdemeanors to felonies for those who knowingly run or help operate an illegal gambling house failed in the House of Representatives.<\/span><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Consumer Warning<\/b><\/span><span class=\"s1\"><b>\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">In his note on illegal gambling, Hoenemeyer stresses that the societal consequences of gambling in an arcade are substantial. The Seminole executive says the gambling businesses, which often occupy retail spaces in strip malls, are &#8220;venues for illegal drugs and violent criminal activity, caused by thugs who take advantage of their lax security and infrequent police patrols.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"main-blockquote\">\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Studies show they aren&#8217;t safe. Not for you. Not for anyone,&#8221; Hoenemeyer declared.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">&#8220;We urge you to be vigilant and avoid putting yourself and others at risk by patronizing such places. Don&#8217;t make it easy for these crooks to take your dollars and simultaneously endanger your well-being,&#8221; Hoenemeyer concluded.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">A list of legal gaming locations in Florida <a href=\"https:\/\/flgaming.gov\/locations\/\">can be found here<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/seminole-tribe-reminds-floridians-illegal-gambling\/\">Seminole Tribe Reminds Floridians About State&#8217;s Illegal Gambling Problem<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\">Casino.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Seminole Tribe is encouraging the public to avoid unregulated gambling outfits Florida has an illegal gambling problem, with slots parlors masquerading as arcades The Seminoles are the only legal operator of Las Vegas-like casinos in Florida The Seminole Tribe of Florida is urging Floridians to shun unregulated gambling businesses. An aerial view of the entrance to Seminole Hard Rock [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1022,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[13],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1020"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1020"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1020\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1023,"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1020\/revisions\/1023"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1022"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.chuckwardrealestate.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}