Vero Vista Auto Care is a long-established shop.

“I’ve been here a little over 20 years,” Owner Mark Occhuizzo said.

He said within that time, they’ve had a number of neighbors.

“We’ve seen a lot of changes,” he said.

What Occhuizzo said he hasn’t seen or heard of in the area is a business getting raided.

“Yeah, I am kind of surprised they seemed like a legitimate business,” he said.

According to the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office, Treasure Bay Arcade isn’t legitimate.

“Inside here are 51 gaming machines all illegal. There were 17 patrons, two managers and an armed guard that met our detectives when they walked in,” Sheriff Ken Mascara said. “All the patrons will get notices to appear for gambling, and the owner will receive 51 charges of running a gambling or slot machine illegally.”

Mascara said it’s very simple to understand why this is illegal.

“You’re putting money in and getting money out,” he said. “When there’s a payout it’s illegal.”

So, Tuesday night deputies went about the business of clearing out the place, they began loading slot machines into a truck. Inside, deputies began checking machines for money.

With a number of vehicles in the parking lot Wednesday afternoon, WPTV knocked on the door for a response. Nobody answered. But by text the owner said he might be available Thursday.

Bruce Trask lives down the block from the arcade. He said good riddance to the arcade.

“They were cutting through here,” Trask said. “Some were using this as a parking lot to go over there. We had to stop them and kick them off the property.”

Back at Vero Vista Auto Care, Occhuizzo said he’s had very little interaction with the folks at the arcade.

“A couple of the employees had come over for prior repairs,” he said, “but I don’t know them on a personal level.”

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