Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Sevier County sheriff's deputies shut down an illegal gambling operation in
Strawberry Plains. Deputies say they went to the Speedway Diner at 844
Asheville Hwy. after several complaints from community members. Sheriff's
deputies tell 6 News that, working on a tip, they went inside Thursday night
and found four illegal poker machines. Capt. Randy Parton showed 6 News how
the machines appeared legitimate at first glance. "This machine right here
was on a video game when we first got there," Parton explains. "And then
when we discovered the remote controls that are used to change them, it went
from a video game over to a draw poker machine." 6 News asked for comment
from the owner, Sharon Tarwater. We were told she wasn't there before an
employee asked us to leave. Investigators say it was word of mouth and
regular customers who were cashing in. Parton adds, "They was operational
from the time they opened in the morning until the time they closed around
10:00 or so in the evening time. Apparently, it was just from repeat
customers knowing that's what they was coming in the business to do."