---
title: "Hostage Call Leads LAPD to an Illegal Gambling Operation in Koreatown; 27 Detained"
description: "A 911 report of an armed man holding a hostage sent Los Angeles police into a Koreatown building early Saturday — where, instead of a kidnapping, officers found an illegal gambling operation and detained 27 people."
category: "Los Angeles"
category_url: https://herald.la/category/los-angeles
author: "Julian Mercado"
published: 2026-06-28T03:38:32.000Z
updated: 2026-06-28T03:38:32.000Z
canonical: https://herald.la/article/hostage-call-leads-lapd-to-an-illegal-gambling-operation-in-koreatown-27-detaine
tags: ["LAPD", "Koreatown", "illegal gambling", "crime", "Los Angeles"]
---
# Hostage Call Leads LAPD to an Illegal Gambling Operation in Koreatown; 27 Detained

A 911 report of an armed man holding a hostage sent Los Angeles police into a Koreatown building early Saturday — where, instead of a kidnapping, officers found an illegal gambling operation and detained 27 people.

A police response to a reported hostage situation in Koreatown ended not with a rescue but with the discovery of an illegal gambling operation early Saturday, when Los Angeles officers detained more than two dozen people.

## A 911 report that didn't add up

Around 4 a.m., LAPD officers were sent to a building near West 8th Street in Koreatown after a 911 message reported that a man with a gun was holding someone hostage, [KTLA reported](https://ktla.com/news/local-news/about-20-detained-after-armed-suspect-call-sparks-lapd-response-in-koreatown/). When officers arrived, they found no hostage and no gunman — but they did find an active, unlicensed gambling operation with a large number of people inside.

## 27 detained, 6 taken into custody

Officers detained 27 people at the scene, [according to FOX 11](https://www.foxla.com/news/local-news/police-break-up-illegal-gambling-operation-in-koreatown). Six of them were taken into custody on outstanding, unrelated warrants; the rest were released. No one was arrested on gambling charges, and police did not identify those taken into custody. Being present at the location is not itself evidence of a crime, and the 21 people released were not charged.

## The reported gunman was never found

Despite the urgency of the original call, officers found no sign of the reported hostage or armed suspect, and police said the matter remained under investigation. It was not clear whether the 911 report was a false alarm, a misunderstanding, or a deliberate attempt to summon police to the site.

Illegal gambling rooms have surfaced periodically across Los Angeles in recent years, often operating quietly in commercial buildings until a complaint or unrelated call draws police attention. LAPD had not released additional details as of Saturday.

## Sources

- [Hostage report leads LAPD to illegal gambling site; 27 detained](https://ktla.com/news/local-news/about-20-detained-after-armed-suspect-call-sparks-lapd-response-in-koreatown/)
- [Police break up illegal gambling operation in Koreatown](https://www.foxla.com/news/local-news/police-break-up-illegal-gambling-operation-in-koreatown)