Robert Bentley, Luther Strange call for VictoryLand shut down

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bingo casino gambling

Gov. Robert Bentley and Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange have joined forces to shut down VictoryLand casino once again.

The two officials sent a letter to Macon County Sheriff Andre Brunson and District Attorney E. Paul Jones asking them to close down VictoryLand on Thursday.

Located in Shorter, Ala. the casino had previously been shuttered since 2013, when a raid by the state took 1,615 gambling machines and $260,000 in cash.

The casino reopened on Sept. 13, with more than 3,000 people in attendance.

“It is widely known that VictoryLand began operations on Sept. 13, 2016 and continues as of today’s date to operate electronic bingo machines,” the letter read. “This is a violation of Alabama law. Electronic bingo has clearly been disallowed by Alabama case law as a form of lottery prohibited under Alabama’s Constitution.”

Bentley and Strange asked for a response by Friday, Sept. 30 with a written description on how they plan to enforce the state’s gambling laws.

In March, the Alabama Supreme Court said the casino owners were passing off games as “bingo,” ruling the machines illegal.

Last month, VictoryLand owner Milton McGregor announced the state closure was illegal, and the casino would reopen despite the court’s ruling saying both the sheriff and district attorney assured him the games are legal.

“While it has taken longer than we hoped, the time is now here and we are pleased that hundreds of our people will have a new job and VictoryLand will be generating a badly needed shot in the arm for Tuskegee and this entire region of Alabama,” McGregor said in an earlier statement announcing the casino’s reopening.

 

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