‘It’s extortion, it’s murder, it’s assault.’Ĭasitas have emerged as a major source of revenue for the Mexican Mafia, whose imprisoned members have sought to “tax” gambling rackets within the territory of street gangs under their control. After Rivas was killed, Bucknell said he received tips from parlor operators who told him, “Every time this guy is a dealer, we get robbed.”įor Subscribers Hidden illegal casinos are booming in L.A., with organized crime reaping big profitsĬasitas represent ‘more than just gambling,’ says a Los Angeles sheriff’s detective. They did not make off with any money, according to police.ĭetectives believe Dunkel may have set up other robberies of illegal gambling parlors in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys. Once the shooting started, roughly 30 people inside the gambling parlor ran out onto Cahuenga Boulevard.īlankenship, Riley and Madrid fled to a nearby alley, where Dunkel was waiting behind the wheel of a silver Dodge Challenger, according to Bucknell. Rivas drew his gun, and both Riley and Madrid shot him, according to the detective. Seconds after Blankenship was confronted by Rivas, Riley and Madrid burst in wearing ski masks and carrying assault rifles, police allege. He entered the gambling parlor wearing a large knife in a sheath, probably to make sure the door was not locked and to distract any security guards inside the building, Bucknell said. Inside the building the night Rivas was killed, police found two large poker tables, a kitchen and bar staffed by a chef and bartender, and several prostitutes, Bucknell said, and a valet was parking cars in a nearby gated lot.Īuthorities believe Blankenship, an Oxnard resident, was used as a decoy. The surgeon said he thought his building was being rented out as a hookah lounge, but the operator of the gambling parlor admitted paying the owner $10,000 a month to host card games two nights a week, Bucknell said. The parlor on Cahuenga Boulevard was located inside a commercial storefront owned by a surgeon, according to Bucknell. Dunkel, a Glendora resident with no criminal history, worked in various gambling parlors as a card dealer and is suspected of being the crew’s “inside man,” Bucknell said. California Gunmen kill security guard at illegal casino near Universal Studios, police sayĪ man who was shot to death early Wednesday in a robbery attempt near Universal Studios was working as a security guard at an illegal casino, authorities say.Īuthorities believe the defendants were operating as a robbery crew that targeted high-stakes card games.

Valley view casino shooting