Pa. Company Pleads Guilty to Running Illegal Video Gambling

Attorney General Dave Sunday announced at the start of the week that a central Pennsylvania amusement company has pleaded guilty to installing and operating hundreds of illegal video gambling machines across the state.

$3 Million Forfeiture in Cash and Assets 

Deibler Brothers Novelty Company, based in Schuylkill County, admitted Friday (February 6) to charges of corrupt organizations, a first-degree felony. A judge sentenced the company to probation and ordered the forfeiture of $3 million in cash and assets to the state.

The charges stem from a 2024 investigation conducted jointly by the Pennsylvania State Police and the Attorney General’s Office. 

Officials said the company installed illegal devices in bars, convenience stores, and other locations across more than a dozen counties. The machines often had misleading signage that suggested they were legal.

“Warned Time and Time Again”

“This company was warned time and time again, and continued to snub its nose at state regulations by flooding Pennsylvania counties with illegal gambling machines,” Attorney General Sunday said. 

“This plea resolution secures a substantial forfeiture of assets to the Commonwealth, and is the second conviction in recent days against offenders contributing to the disorganized environment of illegal video gaming in Pennsylvania.”

The company’s owners, Arthur Deibler, Donald Deibler, and Joel Ney, were connected to Ricky Goodling, a retired Pennsylvania State Police corporal and former Director of National Compliance for Pace-O-Matic, who pleaded guilty last week to money laundering.

Authorities described the case as the result of a multi-year investigation into illegal gambling in Pennsylvania. The probe involved the Pennsylvania State Police, the Attorney General’s Organized Crime, Asset Forfeiture, and Money Laundering sections, and the Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement.

In May 2025, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General confiscated 400 illegal gambling machines from dozens of venues spread across the Keystone State. 

In parallel, the state also filed felony corrupt organizations charges against Buffalo Skill Games, Inc., and J.J Amusement, Inc., two businesses owned by John F. Conley, who had previously faced federal convictions for illegal gambling. On Monday, we reported on a disturbing conclusion by a Gamblers Anonymous spokesperson: many of their new members consider skill games as the main cause of their problems.