Yesterday, the federal authorities raided a Chinatown building at 35-37 East Broadway—apparently, it was full of 'table games and slot machines,'Chinese mahjong,' and 'large cardboard boxes—allegedly filled to the brim with cash.'

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The illegal gambling takedown raid, nicknamed 'Operation Snake Eyes,' led to the arrest of eleven people and seizure of $163,000 in cash. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara's complaint is also looking for the forfeiture of the building where at least four floors were used for gambling:

1. The building was seized last year by the Federal government from its former owner, Won & Har Realty Corporation, after a raid exposed illegal gambling at the location. Won & Har operated pai gow –.
2. Illegal Gambling Ring Busted In NY Chinatown admin, May 23, 2012 3:06 pm On Tuesday, an alleged gambling ring was busted at a six-story building in New York’s Chinatown after two years of.
3. Court documents indicate that Liu and others were operating a total of three illegal gambling businesses throughout Chinatown in Washington, D.C. The illegal gambling occurred from March 2007 to October 2011. Throughout March to December in 2007, Liu managed an illegal gambling business on the 800 block of Sixth Street NW.

Authorities arrested 11 people yesterday when a swarm of more than 25 officers – including US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents — stormed a Chinatown gambling den, law enforcement so.

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Over at least the last two years, the Building has consistently hosted a group of illegal gambling operators offering various gambling options, including pai gow poker and computer-based slot machine games, in nearly half of the Building’s suites. The Building itself has been modified to accommodate these gambling operations, including the creation of a ground floor slots room hosting computers dedicated to slot machine games, and the installation of surveillance cameras throughout areas of the Building dedicated to gambling.

Two people were also arrested for practicing medicine without a license in the building as well.

But today, those at 35-37 East Broadway told WCBS 2 that while there were slot machines, they were just donated and used for fun: 'There’s no gambling. They just play for fun.' Cue Captain Renault.

Anyway, arrests rarely deter illegal gambling den operators: A former Chinatown cop told WNYC, 'Once they take everything out, within six, seven or eight hours there’s a carpenter down there, two-by-fours, bang bang bang, they’re setting up new tables already. And the gambling would be on the next day.'

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UPDATED, 5:12 p.m., July 11: Designer Alberto Makali and real estate investment firm Empire Capital Holdings are now the owners of a mixed-use Chinatown building once home to a gambling den, according to property records filed with the city today.

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The partnership picked up the 24,157-square foot, six-story building, located at 35-37 East Broadway in auction for $20.2 million in March, as TRD reported. The building is 40 percent tenant-occupied, but all leases are month-to-month, according to marketing materials.

Joseph Rahmani’s Venture Capital Properties, which represented the partnership in the sale, declined at the time to reveal the identity of the buyer.

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Makali opened its first store in October 2012 in Abu Dhabi’s Marina Mall. It wasn’t immediately clear what the designer intends to do with the Chinatown property. A representative for Empire Capital Holdings declined to comment on plans for the property.

The building was seized last year by the Federal government from its former owner, Won & Har Realty Corporation, after a raid exposed illegal gambling at the location. Won & Har operated pai gow – or double-hand – poker games as well as computerized slot machines from the premises, according to earlier news reports.

The Department of Homeland Security will pocket 65 percent of the auction proceeds, while Won & Har will get the remainder.