SAN ANTONIO – The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office has released the names of three people who were arrested Wednesday night after a raid related to illegal gambling.
A team of investigators descended on a home in the 300 block of East Mayfield that they believe was the site of the gambling operation and more.
Annalisa Garza Pena, 32, and Jonathan Ramirez, 30, were both taken into custody on unrelated felony warrants. Ramirez was charged with parole violation and Garza Pena, 32, has been charged with forgery, theft and marijuana possession, online jail records show. Garza Pena’s bond has been set at $26,400.
Marcos Martinez, 24, was arrested on a charge of gambling promotion. Investigators believe he was in charge of the operation at the time of the raid. His bond has been set at $2,500.
“My understanding is he was an hourly employee, but we understand he knew exactly what was going on here,” Sheriff Javier Salazar said in a late night news conference.
Read also: SAPD: Driver of stolen truck crashes into wall outside home following hit-and-runSalazar said there were about a dozen customers inside the home at the time. However, they were let go and will not face any charges.
The sheriff said the raid came about through a joint investigation, initiated by a tip his office had received.
“I can certainly see where the neighbors would not want this sort of operation going on in what’s really a nice quiet little neighborhood,” he said.
Investigators seized more than $4,400 in cash, the motherboards from 18 gambling machines and a stolen car.
Salazar said investigators also found evidence that gambling wasn’t the only thing going on.
“Our narcotics canine came to the location and discovered a pretty large amount of crystal methamphetamine,” he said.
Salazar said investigators found about 14 grams of meth, an amount that qualifies as being for distribution rather than personal use.
Investigators also seized three grams of Xanax, Salazar said.
“We are anticipating more arrests and quite possibly federal charges due to the commercial quantity of methamphetamine that was found,” he said.