Video: Get Jesse: Seniors fight back after bingo games are shut down

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LAKEWOOD, Wash. - It's 10 cents a card at the regular bingo game at the Senior Housing Assistance Group home in Lakewood.

But someone claiming to be from the state Gambling Commission told SHAG to shut the games down at 33 facilities in the Puget Sound area.

"It was more of a shock that the Gambling Commission would focus on a little penny ante game we have here," said resident Frank Kemp.

The disappointment seen in the faces of the residents is because this game is about much more than gambling.

"It made me feel kind of bad because I miss the bingo game every Friday night," said resident Hular Riess. "We don't play for a lot of money, we just do it for good social time."

Riess says the biggest pot was around $14.

Vegas, it ain't.

"It don't compare with that whatsoever," he said.

So why would someone complain to the Gambling Commission?

SHAG Executive Director Bill Fenner was told by phone to call the games off.

"It's been a source of a lot of complaints. We've had a lot of call to our home office it's been difficult to explain," he said.

KING

Seniors enjoy a bingo game at the Senior Housing Assistance Group home in Lakewood.

The bingo game had been on hold for two weeks, so we called the Gambling Commission to get to the bottom of the issue.

And they told us no one from their office ever called SHAG headquarters.

We figured out that it was a hoax.

After our conversation with the commission, the state issued a letter to SHAG, promising "Your bingo activity will not be in conflict with the gambling laws of Washington State."

The Gambling Commission is still not sure who made that call, but they said they would at least investigate problems in person, not over the phone.

If you have a consumer concern, call Jesse Jones toll-free at 877-51-JESSE or e-mail him at getjesse@king5.com.