Poland to auction 9,000 seized slot machines after eight years in limbo
A Polish court has ordered the sale of over 9,000 confiscated slot machines after years in storage. The equipment was seized eight years ago during an investigation into a criminal syndicate. Rising costs and the machines’ declining value have pushed authorities to act. The slot machines were taken as evidence in a case involving 22 defendants. They face charges of money laundering and running illegal gambling operations without a licence. The investigation has produced more than 1,600 volumes of files, yet no trial date has been set.
The machines are currently held in a warehouse owned by Caritas. Last year alone, storage fees reached around 265,000 Swiss francs. Judge Olgierd Dąbrowski-Zegalski highlighted the growing expenses and shrinking market value of the aging equipment as key reasons for the proposed sale.
However, the decision is not yet final. The defence team has opposed the move, leaving uncertainty over whether the sale will go ahead—or if buyers will even show interest in the outdated machines. The court’s push to sell the slot machines follows years of mounting storage costs. If approved, the sale could reduce financial strain, though the case itself remains unresolved. The fate of the machines—and the trial—still hangs in the balance.
