Skill games machines seized by city police

By Mike Crowley

MEADVILLE TRIBUNE

Approximately 35 skill games machines were seized by Meadville Police Department last week following the expiration of a court-imposed deadline of Oct. 13, interim City Manager Peter Grella reported to Meadville City Council members during their meeting Tuesday.

“I’m happy to say it went smoothly, peacefully, and shop owners were very cooperative,” Grella said. “The city received a state grant in order to cover the overtime and any other costs of operations to enforce the state law for the period of one year, so our costs have been covered for complying with the state.”

The devices in question were seized on Thursday and Friday, according to Chief Michael Stefanucci, and came from four locations: Playmaker’s, 416 North St.; Plaza Coin-Op Laundry, 18915 Park Avenue Plaza; and S & H Smoke Shop locations at 324 Pine St. and in the Downtown Mall.

None of the machines were plugged in when they were taken by police, and Stefanucci did not expect any charges to be filed in connection with the seizures.

“The law says that they will be forfeited to the commonwealth,” he said. “We would have to go through the forfeiture process to have the courts fulfill that. They would be destroyed after that.”

Grella said the machines will remain in storage until the state provides additional guidance on how to proceed.

Like Grella, Stefanucci said the seizure process went SEE SEIZED, PAGE A4

Interim City Manager Peter Grella reports that approximately 35 skill games machines were seized by city police last week as attorney Tim Wachter, Meadville City Council member Andrew Herbstritt and Mayor Jaime Kinder listen during council’s meeting Tuesday.

MIKE CROWLEY/Meadville Tribune

Continued from Page A1 smoothly as officers with dollies removed the machines, placed them on a city Public Works truck equipped with a lift gate, and transported them to storage at the Public Works garage.

“Most of these businesses were happy to see us,” Stefanucci said. None of the businesses owned the machines, he explained, and they reported having encountered difficulty setting up times for pickup with the companies that provided them. Accompanying each of the machines was paperwork from the same Pittsburgh- based law firm and Stefanucci speculated that they were all owned by the same skill games supplier, though he said officers had not yet determined the identity of the company.

In at least one case, the supplier appeared to have picked up one or two newer machines at one of the businesses in the days before the deadline while leaving older machines that were subsequently seized by police, according to Stefanucci. The company also reportedly removed money from the older machine just before the deadline but did not remove the machines themselves.

Stefanucci expects the department to seize additional machines.

“If anybody knows where any are at and wants to submit a tip,” he said, “they can.”

Meadville Police Department can be reached via phone at (814) 724-6100.

Mike Crowley can be reached at (814) 724-6370 or by email at mcrowley@meadvilletribune. com.