Police busted an underground gambling den in downtown Moscow on Friday after catching the startled staff and gamblers red-handed, police spokeswoman Yelena Perfilova said.
The casino was situated in a hotel across the street from the Russian Foreign Ministry building. Entrance into the casino was through the kitchen on the second floor and then through a hidden door with no handle.
"[Police] seized 13 poker tables, four roulette wheels, 17 slot-machines, 50,000 gambling chips, and 2,000 decks of cards," Perfilova said.
Some 80 staff and gamblers were in the casino when heavily armed officers dressed in black broke in.
Illegal casinos have spread like wildfire across Russia since a law came into force in July 2009 banning gambling everywhere except in four remote zones.
MOSCOW, January 14 (RIA Novosti)
