Aces Wired founder Gordon Graves enters felony guilty plea; three other executives to plead guilty to misdemeanors
CORPUS CHRISTI An Aces Wired entity today pled guilty to operating an illegal gambling operation. In addition to the corporations plea founder and board member Gordon Graves 72 pled guilty to felony tampering with evidence charges.
The states investigation into Aces Wired and its executives is believed to be the largest coordinated gambling prosecution in Texas history. Roughly $1 million in assets also must be forfeited by Aces Wired because of the guilty pleas.
Todays guilty pleas stem from a joint effort by the Texas Attorney Generals Office and the Nueces County District Attorneys Office. The Office of the Attorney General is acting as special assisting prosecutor at the request of Nueces County District Attorney Carlos Valdez.
The states Aces Wired investigation and the Nueces County guilty pleas reflect a coordinated statewide investigative effort by the Office of the Attorney General the Department of Public Safety the Tarrant County District Attorneys Office the Bexar County District Attorneys Office the Potter County District Attorneys Office the Coryell County District Attorneys Office and the Taylor County District Attorneys Office.
In May 2008 officers with the Corpus Christi Police Department the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Office of the Attorney General executed a search warrant at Aces Wireds Corpus Christi location which did business as Ace Amusement Center #5. Similar raids were simultaneously conducted in other counties across Texas.
During the Corpus Christi operation officers seized 90 gambling devices including so-called 8-liner" machines and $175000 in cash and bank account assets. Graves third-degree felony tampering with evidence plea is associated with his efforts to prevent law enforcement from locating identifying and seizing gambling devices at Ace Amusement centers. Under his agreement with the state Graves must fully cooperate with authorities ongoing investigation pay a $5000 fine and have no involvement with 8-liner" video slot machines or other gambling devices in any capacity.
Three other Aces Wired officers await court appearances in Tarrant County. They are Jeremy Tyra 27 Knowles Cornwell 57 and Kenneth Griffith 59 all of Dallas. All three suspects are expected to plead guilty to hindering apprehension which is a Class A misdemeanor. The suspects guilty pleas stem from their efforts to shield Aces Wired employees from law enforcement during the May 2008 raid at Aces Wired Amusement Center facilities across the state.
Aces Wired defendants are also expected to enter felony guilty pleas in Tarrant and Bexar counties. Corporate entities will plead guilty to engaging in organized criminal activity for gambling promotion a state jail felony and possession of gambling devices a Class A misdemeanor. The company must pay $14000 in fines in each of the three jurisdictions for a total of $42000. As a result of the guilty pleas the corporate entities will be subject to forfeiture of all seized property under the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. Approximately 600 8-liner" machines were seized in statewide raids last year.
In March 2008 the Office of the Attorney General joined an investigative effort organized by the Texas Department of Public Safetys Criminal Intelligence Service to prepare these cases. This investigative team also included district attorneys offices in Tarrant Nueces and Bexar counties Dallas and Corpus Christi police departments vice units as well as officers with the San Antonio Police Department. Prosecution of the cases was coordinated by the Office of the Attorney General Nueces County District Attorney Carlos Valdez Bexar County District Attorney Susan Reed and the acting Tarrant County District Attorney Joe Shannon Jr.
