VictoryLand Casino is expected to reopen today, more than three years after state authorities raided it and shut it down.
Owner Milton McGregor announced last month that VictoryLand would have a soft reopening on September 13. At that time, he said the bingo parlor would hire around 200 employees and would have around 500 electronic bingo machines for patrons. He says the casino plans to expand over the coming months.
State officials raided VictoryLand in 2013, seizing over 1600 bingo machines and over $260,000 in cash and closing the casino. In April of this year, the state Supreme Court ruled Alabama could keep the cash and machines, and that the machines were illegal.
But Governor Robert Bentley issued an executive order last year saying enforcement of laws is mainly the responsibility of sheriffs and district attorneys. Milton McGregor says the Macon County Sheriff and DA have assured him his operation is legitimate.
Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange had no comment on VictoryLand’s reopening.