Mass inspections of gambling halls, pawn shops and fast loan companies have begun in Varna. The specialized police operation is being carried out jointly with other services. One of the highlights of the inspections of gambling halls is whether people are allowed into them in violation of the law. Late last night, a BNT team was present when the inspection team entered a gaming hall in the Varna quarter “Asparuhovo”.
Shortly before midnight, representatives of the police, fire department and tax inspectorate entered one of the gambling halls in “Asparuhovo” for an inspection. The operation is part of a week-long inspection that covers places with a certain profile.
Iliyan Anestev, “Economic Police”, OD of the Ministry of Interior - Varna: "We mainly check in the gaming halls whether there are minors or underage persons. If such persons are found, the parents are fined accordingly – from 300 to 500 leva for the first violation and from 500 to 1000 for the second. Currently, checks are also being carried out for persons who are prohibited from entering the gaming hall, no such persons have been identified at this stage."
Since for the owners of gaming halls, admitting minors and juveniles leads not only to serious fines, but also to the revocation of the license, such violations – at least on the first day of the inspections, were not found.
According to visitors to the hall, people under 18 do not come to play here.
BNT: Do you come often?
– No, not often, once or twice a week, something like that.
BNT: Have you not seen anyone under 18?
– I have never seen it.
What the BNT team saw was a violation of another ban - for smoking indoors, but since the inspection team did not include representatives of the RZI, there was no one to impose a fine on the owner for this. During the first day of the operation, 27 gaming halls were inspected on the territory of the Ministry of Internal Affairs - Varna.
In addition to representatives of the police, fire department and the National Revenue Agency, representatives of the Labor Inspectorate and the Consumer Protection Commission are participating in them. All gaming halls will be inspected, as well as pawnshops and quick loan companies. The specialized operation will continue until Sunday.