Charitable Bingo is a major success, so teenagers stole the profits!
Ellesmere Port in the UK is the home of the Mecca bingo hall. Charitable bingo profits for the first half of 2012 have exceeded the expectations for the entire year!
Mecca’s goal for all of 2012 was £1,500. By the end of June, Mecca had amassed £1,700 to be tendered to Marie Curie Cancer Care. Each year Mecca sponsors a different charity. Their success is attributed to the dedication of team members and charitable customers. Various events have been held at Mecca during 2012 to add to the success of its charitable donations. The gift to the Cancer Care organization will enable an increase in free home nursing care for cancer patients.
Gary Shanks, the general manager of Mecca Ellesmere Port, is thankful to the team members and loyal customers for their successful fundraising efforts. Also thankful is the community fundraiser for Marie Curie Cancer Care, Charlotte Sewell. She recently praised the Mecca bingo hall and all similar organizations for their serious charitable efforts. Sewell commented that the funds provided by the bingo hall and other charitable entities enabled the Cancer Care to continue its excellent community work.
Country Bingo in Florida
An entirely different scenario enfolded a continent away in the U.S. Bingo is a time-honoured and loved game. Bingo halls are therefore known to be profitable. Money attracts thieves. Three teenagers in ninja costumes, ran into a Palm Bay, Florida bingo hall filled with players. The teens, with guns allegedly in full view, started shouting for everyone to drop to the ground. The terrified players and bingo hall employees hid under tables as the three thieves entered an office, grabbed a suitcase full of money and fled the scene. The suitcase contained checks and cash totaling $4,000.
Good surveillance cameras are credited with solving the crime. The three 17-year-olds could be seen on the video without masks, looking around the bingo hall prior to the theft. A confession was obtained from each of the three as the result of the surveillance video and witness accounts. The witnesses said they saw guns, even though guns were not picked up on the video. According to police, the trio are currently housed in the juvenile detention center, and may be relocated to the jail in Brevard County. At least one further individual is being sought in the robbery.
Mayra Hidalgo, a citizen of Brevard County, expressed surprise at the criminal actions of the teenagers. Hidalgo’s perspective is that kids do foolish things, and that is fully expected; but the commission of a crime is a whole other world and completely out of the blue. The three teens have been charged with armed robbery and grand theft, and will be sentenced as adults. Crime doesn’t pay, but money remains a magnet.
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