A 55-year-old man is facing multiple charges after Saanich Police and a provincial police unit shut down what they called an “illegal gaming house” last year.

Saanich Police, Victoria Police and the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit BC (CFSEU-BC) executed multiple search warrants on Aug. 8, 2024, including at the underground casino, arresting 14 people in total.

It was the culmination of a “complex,” months-long investigation into illegal gaming in Saanich that started in January 2024, police say.

“Over the course of the investigation, officers gathered substantial evidence confirming that multiple individuals were involved in the operation and management of the illegal establishment,” said the CFSEU-BC in an update Wednesday.

During the raids, police say they seized two poker tables, “several thousand poker chips,” ledgers, tax documents, approximately $17,000 in cash and “multiple electronic devices used by alleged keepers of the gaming house.”

Afterwards, police also executed several more search warrants on vehicles associated with the investigation, and ended up seizing three luxury vehicles, a 2024 Cadillac Lyriq, a 2020 Land Rover, and a 2014 Mercedes SL550, as “proceeds of crime.”

While 14 people were arrested, just one person has been charged as of Nov. 26, 2025.

Bryan William Toth, 55, of Esquimalt, is facing three charges – including money laundering, possession of proceeds of crime, and keeping a common gaming house contrary to Section 201(1) of the Criminal Code of Canada.

Police say Toth turned himself over to police on Wednesday. He’s since been released on conditions until his next court appearance.

“These results demonstrate our unwavering commitment to disrupting criminal enterprises operating in British Columbia,” said Sgt. Sarbjit K. Sangha, media relations officer of CFSEU-BC. 

“Illegal gaming houses are often intertwined with organized crime, and this investigation sends a clear message: CFSEU-BC will continue to investigate, dismantle, and hold accountable those who profit from criminal activity.”

Users say underground casino description was exaggerated

In August 2024, some people who attended the underground casino, which operated out of an old medical clinic along Cook Street, said the police’s description of the building was overblown.

The CFSEU-BC originally told CHEK News it resembled a mini Las Vegas.

“The house is essentially gutted, it’s opened up, and when you walk into a casino in Las Vegas or River Rock or wherever it is, a mini version of that is inside these homes complete with tables and dealers and cards and dice games,” said Staff Sgt. Lindsey Houghton, spokesperson for the CFSEU-BC, on Aug. 9, 2024.

“Anything you can think of, so that’s what we found.”

Two patrons that CHEK News interviewed anonymously said the building served more as a place where a group of friends would get together and play cards, but with money.

“There is no baccarat table, which was described in some of the articles … and there are definitely no electronic gaming. It’s just regular people who want to play poker,” said one patron.

While the two people CHEK News spoke to said the description of the gaming house was exaggerated, both admitted they knew what they were doing was illegal.

– With files from CHEK’s Tchadas Leo

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