Bars, restaurants and other establishments offering video gambling in Illinois were burglarized 473 times in 2025 — an alarming rise from the prior year, when there were 358 incidents.
Not even six months into 2026, there already have been more than 500 burglaries — signaling what could be a very ugly year crime-wise at local gaming parlors.
“They gotta figure something out because these guys are cleaning up,” says a gambling cafe operator who asked not to be named, and whose suburban business was hit by thieves in May.
“They’re doing four, five places a night.”
Some days saw even more. There were 10 on June 2 — with a single burglary reported in or near Alsip, Beecher, Chicago Heights, Chicago Ridge, Cicero, Crete, Monee and Tinley Park, and two in north suburban Niles, public records show.
The Illinois Gaming Board, the regulatory agency overseeing casinos, sports betting and video gambling, released records in response to a Chicago Sun-Times request showing 453 break-ins from Jan. 1 to June 16, during which time:
- Cicero, a near western suburb, appears to have had the most burglaries, with more than two dozen reported, while nearby Berwyn had around 20. There were 16 in south suburban Blue Island, where Democratic state Rep. Bob Rita — one of the legislature’s longtime point people on gambling legislation — holds political sway.
- Nearly 50 heists saw $10,000 or more taken by thieves who made off with more than $1.5 million in total. In 2025, more than $2.7 million was taken altogether, and about $1.9 million was swiped in 2024.
- More than 100 municipalities had businesses hit by burglars, and many towns and gambling establishments were hit multiple times, though not all burglaries saw cash taken.
Between June 1 and June 16 alone, there were more than 70 incidents, spanning Burbank to Harwood Heights, Willow Springs to Waukegan, the agency’s records show.
The Sun-Times asked the gaming board for updated numbers beyond the records, and an agency spokeswoman says: “Based on the information available or reported to the IGB, there were 502 burglaries of video gaming establishments as of June 22.”
It’s unclear how many arrests have been made.
The gaming board spokeswoman says the agency “does not formally track all arrests by local law enforcement agencies.”
The answer as to why such crime has been skyrocketing may be relatively simple: The crooks might just be catching on that there’s a lot of cash at stake, and gambling establishments are seemingly everywhere.
The MO is often the same:
Crews of young people drive up, sometimes in a stolen car, use tools to smash through the front doors and windows at night when the businesses are closed, then pummel or make off with their devices to get at the cash, whether video poker machines, ATMs or “redemption” kiosks.
They’re in and out in minutes and, even with cameras and alarms, they’re often not caught by responding police — though authorities have been increasingly communicating and coordinating with each other, and gaming businesses, to try to curb this problem.
Many of the businesses are adding security measures such as drop-down metal shields over windows when the businesses are closed to prevent an easy breach through the glass.
Such video gambling currently exists only in select suburbs and downstate communities, but it could go live in coming months in the city of Chicago.
That’s causing worry that the wave of burglaries will follow into the city where crime is already heavy and police are overwhelmed at times, with Mayor Brandon Johnson among those unhappy with the prospect of “video gaming terminals,” or VGTs, appearing in the near future.
“As we’ve said before, the administration retains deep concerns regarding the legalization of VGTs in Chicago and the associated public safety risks posed by their dissemination citywide,” a Johnson spokesman says.
“The continued uptick in incidents of crime and violence at suburban establishments that already operate VGTs only reinforces these fears and raises significant questions about the impact communities across Chicago could face if VGT expansion is to proceed.”
“The administration has raised these concerns to members of the City Council and continues to engage meaningfully with members and stakeholders as we work to ensure this process is carried out with the best interests of Chicago residents and taxpayers in mind.”
A spokeswoman for the gaming board — a government agency overseen by Gov. JB Pritzker — said that “no video gaming locations will go live in Chicago before the city has completed its licensure/authorization process and the location received the necessary approvals.”
As of June 12, there were 282 “pending Chicago video gaming location applicants” with the gaming board, which has licensed six Chicago locations that have yet to open.
Pritzker’s office wouldn’t comment on questions about video gambling establishment burglaries.
But the gaming board’s administrator, Marcus Fruchter, said at a recent public meeting: “The IGB takes property crimes against video gaming locations seriously. We work closely with state and local police departments and other law enforcement agencies, local state’s attorneys’ offices, and the Illinois attorney general’s office to support efforts and successfully prosecute burglaries at video gaming locations statewide.”
The agency also is keen on reminding the public that it’s a “gambling regulator.”
“We are not a first responder to burglaries or property crimes, and the IGB does not have the mandate or jurisdiction to provide security services for video gaming establishments,” the spokeswoman said. “Moreover, as we discussed above and at the June 11 IGB meeting, licensees also play a critical role in protecting their own property and investments.”