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RAMSEY COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT SPECIAL INVESTIGATIVE UNIT MEMORANDUM TO: Lt Votel FROM: M Isaac SUBJECT: ' Play 21' Blackjack Tables DATE: July 1,1992 NARRATIVE: On above date I contacted Play 21 requesting information on what additional bars or nightclubs may have their game I was advised that of the 4 clubs listed on the infor- mation sheet, Williams nightclub no longer has their game in their bar. However a new partici- pant called Russ's Pub in the City of Burnsville would be starting up with 'Play 21" next weekend. I also learned that of the bars /nightclubs participating in Play 21, only Nicalows has the game being played during the week, with the hours being 9:00 pm until 1:00 am. The other bars /nightclubs have the game being played the same hours but only on Friday and Saturday night. The contact person also indicated that 2 bars in the City of Little Canada would soon be getting their game. Myself and Deputy Hankee went to Nicalows and participated in the game. Of the approxi- mately 30 people in the bar, only 3 patrons were playing the game. I later learned from man- agement of the bar that one of the three people playing Play 21 was an employee of Play 21 participating in the game only to help create interest among bar patrons. The game is played with Las Vegas style rules, with "the house" holding the advantage. However, the game was played in a friendly environment with dealer assisting the players whenever possible. At no time could we detect any illegal betting taking place. All participants bet only with the chips purchased from the dealer and all bets appeared to be moderate. We continued to observe the game after leaving the table but could not detect any change in the tempo of the game nor the sizes of the bets. I later had a short conversation with a managerial person at Nicalows. The managerial person emphasized that Play 21 is only played for fun with the dealers being payed only from the money used to purchase the chips. This report was written based solely on the single visit to Nicalows in Minneapolis. It could not be determined what type of activities take place or could take place after hours or at the other establishments which have the game. Page 1