Does Prince George’s Have a Gambling Problem?

Amid a debate in Annapolis on , police say underground gambling in the county is on the rise.

In recent weeks, investigators in the county have been cracking down on unauthorized gambling facilities. Last week, investigators took sledgehammers to gambling machines in Temple Hills, dismantling them, according to The Washington Post.

As state officials wrestle over legislation to allow gambling at proposed casinos in National Harbor in Oxon Hill and Rosecroft Raceway in Fort Washington, raids on illegal “mini-casinos” or underground gambling locations in the county have become more common. Police recently raided a District Heights Laundromat after a gambler told police that he had lost $5,000 to the illegal slot machines, according to the Post.

Police told the Post that slot machines in the county have become commonplace.

“It seems like every direction we turned — slot machines,” police Sgt. Laurie Hall, who is in charge of Prince George’s anti-gambling enforcement, told Post reporters.

Do you think Prince George’s County has a gambling problem? Let us know in the comments section.