SPRINGDALE -- The owners of two convenience stores were issued citations Friday for allowing gambling at the stores.
Glen Calhoun, 72, and Tammie Calhoun, 57, both of 3147 Indian Springs Ave., received two felony citations each for keeping a gambling house.
Lindsey Calhoun, 29, 3420 Brian St., received two felony citations for being an accomplice to keeping a gambling house.
All three turned themselves in Friday morning to the Washington County Detention Center and were released a short time later on no bond. A court date of July 19 was set for all three.
Mark Calhoun, 32, was issued two felony citations for being an accomplice to keeping a gambling house. He was arrested Thursday and also released with no bond.
Tammie and Glen Calhoun own the Kings Korner store at 2808 W. Huntsville Ave. and Kings Xpress at 2513 N. Thompson St. Police removed what they said were 31 gambling machines from the two stores Thursday.
Several store employees said Mark Calhoun and Lindsey Calhoun emptied money out of the gambling machines, according to a police report. They are the children of Tammie and Glen Calhoun.
Phone calls Friday afternoon found both stores open for business.
Operating an unlicensed gambling place in Arkansas is a felony, with possible penalties of six years in prison or fines up to $10,000, said Matt Durrett, the Washington County prosecutor.
Lt. Jeff Taylor, a spokesman for the Police Department, said the slot machines in the stores were operated on an amusement license, similar to those used by Chuck E. Cheese and Dave & Buster's arcades. Winners of those establishments' games of chance get tickets, which they redeem for prizes.
At the Kings convenience stores, the tickets were redeemed for cash, which was paid from the cash registers, Taylor said. The operation was similar to a casino, he said.
Durrett said gambling is illegal in Arkansas, but voters passed a constitutional amendment in 2018 to allow four casinos in the state. The ballot initiative gave the Arkansas Racing Commission the authority to license and regulate casino gambling.
Police and Arkansas Beverage Control started a joint investigation into the businesses in 2016. Undercover beverage control agents gambled at the stores several times over the years.
On April 11 a caller reported a robbery he said began at the store. The caller said he won a large amount of cash while playing slot machines at the Huntsville Avenue store. He reported he was followed home and robbed.
Calhoun's arrest report says the man who reported the robbery won $300. Jared Thomas Clark of 6545 Georges Ave. was arrested April 30 in connection with the robbery.
NW News on 07/13/2019