A game about shooting fish is at the center of SC $1 million illegal gambling case

A game about shooting digital fish is wrapped up in a $1 million illegal gambling case involving unlicensed gaming machines used in bars and convenience stores.

Bubba Technology Group, a Piedmont-based gaming company, pleaded guilty in federal court to operating an illegal gambling organization that provided unlicensed gaming machines to South Carolina businesses, including bars and convenience stores, according the U.S. Attorney’s Office in South Carolina.

The company was charged with a felony and made to forfeit $367,000 in profits from its gambling operation.

Law enforcement agents also seized “dozens of machines” and an additional $670,000 from gaming houses affiliated with the business, according to a release from the United States Attorney’s Office.

The “Fish Machines” being sold and leased by Bubba Technology Group allowed a player to insert cash into the machine and then attempt to shoot digital fish based on how much the player had bet. A successful game would result in a receipt that could be exchanged with the bar tender for money.

Bubba Technology Group was sentenced to one year of probation in addition to the forfeited profits.

Greenville, Spartanburg and Cherokee county officials helped investigate the case, in addition to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the federal Department of Homeland Security.

“The Defendant took a chance that it could make money by breaking the law. It lost that bet,” said U.S. Attorney Adair Boroughs in a release. “This Office will aggressively pursue those who seek to get rich by breaking federal laws. Wherever illegal money is made, crime festers.”