OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – Text messages sent by suspended Osceola County sheriff Marcos Lopez, including one featuring emojis of slot machines and a money bag, link him to a multi-million-dollar illegal gambling operation, authorities allege in newly released court records.
Lopez pleaded not guilty to racketeering charges in June following his arrest and suspension from office by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
In 2019, while campaigning to become sheriff of Osceola County, court records indicate a longtime friend who worked as a security guard at a Lake County gaming room introduced Lopez to businessman Krisha Deokaran.
Authorities allege Deokaran owned and operated several gambling establishments since 2016.
Deokaran has not been charged with any crimes, court records show.
[WATCH: Osceola County Sheriff Marcos Lopez suspended amid federal racketeering charges]
According to an affidavit, Deokaran told investigators he donated a total of $5,000 to Lopez’s campaign and became friends with the sheriff candidate.
While visiting one of Deokaran’s gaming rooms, Lopez allegedly expressed interest in partnering with Deokaran to open “something like this” in Osceola County, court records indicate.
Ying “Kate” Zhang, a Kissimmee businesswoman, also befriended Lopez in 2019 and contributed to his campaign, according to records.
Zhang imported slot machines and other electronic gaming devices from China, prosecutors claim.
Under Florida law, it is illegal to own or operate slot machines unless they are on tribal property or within licensed pari-mutuel facilities in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.
Prosecutors claim Lopez later introduced Zhang to Deokaran and eventually became business partners with them.
“Kate, nothing to worry,” Lopez allegedly wrote in a September 2019 text message to Zhang. “No matter what the outcome is when I win we start the first internet amusement cafe in Osceola County. You will be safe and not have to worry about anything because I will be your sheriff.”
[WATCH: Suspended Osceola sheriff’s co-defendant may be in China, associates say]
Later that month, Lopez sent Zhang a text message containing emojis of two slot machines, an equal sign, and an emoji of a money bag, investigators claim.
Lopez was elected to his first term as sheriff in November 2020.
After taking office, Lopez reportedly issued Deokaran an honorary “special deputy” badge, which investigators later confiscated as part of their probe into the alleged gambling operation.
While looking for a commercial property to open a gaming room in Osceola County, Deokaran told investigators he received a text message from Lopez about a former restaurant on U.S. 192 that was the scene of a fatal shooting in 2021.
“I got something for you,” Lopez allegedly wrote. “We did a raid, and I shut that place down, it’s ours.”
Eclipse Social Club opened at the site of the former restaurant in 2022, Deokaran said.
TikTok videos reportedly recorded inside the club show Las Vegas-style slot machines and other gaming devices, including electronic shooting games known as fish tables.
Deokaran told investigators he paid Lopez between $600,000 and $700,000 in proceeds from the gaming business since 2020.
The cash payments were normally put into manila envelopes and given to Lopez at restaurants or at the sheriff’s home, Deokaran claimed.
Zhang also paid Lopez about $4,000 to $6,000 each month, Deokaran told investigators.
Zhang, who is also charged with racketeering, has not been arrested and may be in China, News 6 has learned.
In exchange for the money from Deokaran and Zhang, prosecutors alleged Lopez used his position as sheriff to protect the illegal gambling operation.
[WATCH: New details emerge in former Sheriff Lopez gambling investigation]
Several Osceola County deputies stopped by Eclipse Social Club in 2022, records indicate.
“Your deputies is at the eclipse (sic),” Deokaran allegedly wrote in a September 2022 text message to Lopez. “He said I have shut down (sic).”
Deokaran then sent Lopez a photo of one of the deputies, prosecutors claim.
Lopez allegedly responded to the text message about two hours later.
“Let me know if they say something,” prosecutors claim Lopez wrote. “You should have no issues.”
“They left,” Deokaran reportedly replied.
Eclipse Social Club would remain open until August 2024, when a Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation task force executed a search warrant on the establishment.
The MBI notified the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office about the operation months ahead of time, court records show.
Less than 30 minutes before the raid was scheduled to occur, Lopez allegedly called MBI Director Ronald Stucker and expressed concern about the operation.
“Director Stucker said he was left with the impression that (Lopez) questioned whether the law was clear on gaming stores or internet cafes,” the arrest affidavit states.