$24M: Florida Slots Owner Fights Against RICO and ML Charges

The owner of a slots parlor in Florida, US, accused of running a $24 million illegal gambling operation in the state now wants a judge to dismiss the most serious charges brought against her. The woman argues that prosecutors have turned what she describes as a gambling case into an organized crime prosecution. Undercover Agents Found Hundreds of Slot Machines Forty-five-year-old R.R., who owns Il Villagio Senior Entertainment Center in Lady Lake, Fla., has filed a 32-page motion seeking to dismiss one racketeering charge and three money-laundering counts. Florida authorities raided Il Villagio in July 2025 after a successful undercover investigation. They seized approximately 190 alleged illegal slot machines. Eighty more machines were reportedly discovered at a warehouse that had ties with the same operation. Earlier this month, the state’s Gaming Control Commission busted two locations in St. Petersburg, seizing over 160 gambling devices in partnership with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, among others. Prosecutors allege that more than $24 million moved through bank accounts linked to R.R.’s business between January 2023 and July 2025. Authorities have also claimed that the money was moved with the help of shell companies, as well as wire transfers and overseas accounts, with roughly $3 million reaching Ray’s personal account. “Garden-Variety Criminal Undertaking” Ray’s attorneys argue that the allegations do not meet the requirements for prosecution under Florida’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act, simply known as RICO. The defense team argues that prosecutors failed to show a pattern of separate criminal incidents. Instead, the attorneys described the allegations as an ongoing illegal gambling operation rather than a broader criminal enterprise. “Stripped of the State’s characterization, this is a garden-variety criminal undertaking,” Ray’s attorneys wrote in the motion. The defense also points to testimony from lead investigator Robaldo Ramos during a deposition. Ramos acknowledged that investigators found no evidence of drugs, prostitution, back-room poker games or other criminal activity at Il Villagio. He also confirmed that Ray was the sole owner and operator of the business. According to the defense, those findings undermine the prosecution’s description of Il Villagio as part of a wider organized criminal operation. Maserati, Gold Bar, and $350,000 in Cash Ray’s attorneys are also challenging the money-laundering counts. They question whether prosecutors can prove that Ray attempted to conceal the source or ownership of the money allegedly generated by the gambling operation. During his deposition, Ramos was asked how the money had been concealed. His response was direct: “They were not concealed. They were just deposited into a bank.” Authorities have previously described a large amount of cash connected to Ray. When announcing the charges, prosecutors said she was driving a Maserati containing nearly $350,000 in cash and a gold bar when she was apprehended. Investigators also described cash being transported in shoeboxes and money bags. Ray is not asking the court to dismiss every charge against her. Her motion specifically targets the RICO and money-laundering counts, which prosecutors have used to frame the alleged gambling activity as a more serious criminal case. Her attorneys further argue that the money-laundering charges depend on prosecutors establishing an underlying felony. If the racketeering charge is dismissed, they contend the three money-laundering counts should also be dismissed.