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Iowa DCI Focuses on Casino Crimes

IOWA – As reported by the Des Moines Register: "The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, traditionally known as the state's major crime-fighting force, is increasingly becoming a casino enforcement agency, with more agents working on gambling than on general crime cases.

"The DCI has 83 agents aboard 11 riverboats and at three racetrack casinos, including 32 agents hired since December. About 20 more will be added to gambling posts this summer and fall, as the agency fills vacancies and handles the openings of newly licensed casinos, said Assistant DCI Director Joe Diaz, who oversees gambling-related law enforcement.

"'Everybody that we are hiring now goes straight to the Gaming Bureau. Those are now our entry-level positions.' Diaz said. One new casino in Worth County opened in April, while another opened to the public on Monday in Emmetsburg. Others are due to open in September in Riverside and next spring in Waterloo.

"…The DCI's assignment of so many agents to gambling operations isn't causing Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller to worry about possible distractions from general criminal investigations, said Bob Brammer, a Miller aide…"

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