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Coffee County District Attorney General Craig Northcott is reaching out to residents for help in cracking down on illegal poker machines.

In a statement released over the weekend, Northcott said the following regarding the machines:

“When I first took office in 2014, I promised that I would not allow organized and systemic illegal gambling operations to continue in Coffee County, especially as it relates to poker machines. At the time, many convenience stores and other businesses throughout the County had multiple machines operating and they, along with the supplier of the machines, promoted gambling for their own financial gain. This conduct was and still is a Class E felony in Tennessee. So long as it remains such, I will not turn a blind eye to this criminal enterprise.

“Within a few weeks of my election in 2014, my office with the help of our law enforcement partners were able to rid the County of these machines. In recent months, I have learned that the machines have returned. The operators falsely claim that these machines are legal and will place signs on them to suggest that they are not gambling machines. This is clearly not true under Tennessee law. Please know that I am making efforts to find these machines, eliminate them from the County, and prosecute those who are operating/supplying them. Also know that using them is a crime. I am reaching out to the community for your help in learning where these machines are located.

“If you are aware of these poker machines being operated within Coffee County, please contact Inv. Brandon Reed with my office to provide him with this information. He can be reached at (931) 723-5055 or dbreed@tndagc.org.

“I appreciate your assistance and look forward to eliminating this problem once again.”

Under Tennessee law, 39-17-505 “A person commits an offense who knowingly owns, manufactures, possesses, buys, sells, rents, leases, stores, repairs, transports, prints, or makes any gambling device or record.”

In describing what happens to the device when found TCA says “(1) Any gambling device or record is contraband and shall be subject to seizure, confiscation and forfeiture in accordance with the forfeiture provisions, compiled in chapter 11, part 7 of this title.

(2) After a gambling device or record has been forfeited to the state pursuant to chapter 11, part 7 of this title, the court hearing the criminal charges resulting in the forfeiture shall order the destruction of the device or record. If the district attorney general or law enforcement agency does not believe that a gambling device or record should be destroyed in a particular case, the district attorney general shall petition the court for an alternate disposition of the record or device. If the court finds that the proposed alternate disposition reasonably ensures that the device will not be used in an unlawful manner in this state, the court may grant the petition and order the disposition of the device or record in accordance with the petition.”