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Illegal gambling den worker Shanica Merced breaks silence on ‘plot to rob seedy poker club’ after two dead in shootout
A patron at the shady gambling spot turned the tables on the would-be robbers when he opened fire
A WOMAN accused of orchestrating a gunpoint robbery at an illegal gambling club she helped run has proclaimed her innocence, claiming one of the suspects lost his mind.
Shanica Merced has accused Bridgeport investigators of "dragging her name," telling The U.S. Sun she had nothing to do with the fatal double shooting at an illicit gambling den in Connecticut.
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Bridgeport police said Merced conspired with Tayvon Geter and Richard Davis, both 30, to rob the underground club she helped run on the night of March 30.
But, their plans were spoiled when one of the gambling patrons exchanged gunfire with the would-be robbers, killing them, investigators said.
Now, Merced, who was arrested on Tuesday in connection with the botched robbery-turned-shootout, is claiming she had nothing to do with the alleged plot.
"I had nothing to do with it. I never told those boys nothing," Merced, 35, told The U.S. Sun on Wednesday.
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Merced said her friend and another pal showed up at her workplace unannounced that evening.
"I didn't tell the boys to come here [the illegal gambling club]. They just showed up," she told The U.S. Sun.
"The second boy was a surprise to me. I don't even talk to the other boy.
"The boys walked in with masks on, but everyone wears masks now."
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Merced claims the men removed their masks and began socializing with other patrons.
"But they took the masks off. We were talking, they were talking to everyone else in the gambling spot," she added.
'HE LOST HIS MIND'
However, Bridgeport police, citing video evidence, said Merced let the mask-clad suspects in the club and was caught on surveillance footage briefly sitting down with one of the men alone moments before the robbery.
Merced said she was taken aback when her friend "lost his mind" and began robbing the place at gunpoint.
"Them boys tried to rob the place. I had nothing to do with that," she said.
"My friend was coming in just being a friend, and he loses his mind.
"I didn't know what's going on in people's head. He wanted to do what he wanted to do. I had nothing to do with that."
What we know so far
Bridgeport police arrested Shanica Merced, 35, on August 10, 2024, in connection with the fatal shooting at an illegal gambling club on March 30, 2024.
What we know so far:
- Shanica Merced was arrested on August 13 during a traffic stop by Bridgeport Police Task Force Officers.
- Merced was arrested on an active felony warrant, police said.
- Investigators said Merced conspired with two would-be crooks to rob an illegal gambling club she helped run.
- The robbers, identified as Tayvon Geter and Richard Davis, both 30, were shot and killed on the scene by a gambling patron who exchanged gunfire.
How the crime went down:
- Bridgeport police said surveillance footage from the illegal gambling establishment captured Shanica Merced letting Geter and Davis inside.
- Video captured Geter and Davis wearing masks as they entered the club.
- Merced sat alone with one of the suspect's before the robbery took place, investigators said.
- Davis and Geter then carried out their plan to rob the club and its patrons at gunpoint.
- However, one of the patrons exchanged gunfire with the robbers, killing both.
- The gambling patron was injured during the shooting but survived.
- A bullet grazed Merced as she fled from gunfire.
What Shanica Merced claims happened:
- Shanica Merced proclaimed her innocence to The U.S. Sun on Wednesday, saying she had nothing to do with the botched robbery.
- Merced said she was taken aback when one of her friends and his pal began robbing the gambling club at gunpoint.
- The 35-year-old claimed her friend stared directly at her and shot her.
- "Them boys tried to rob the place. I had nothing to do with that," she told The U.S. Sun.
Gunfire erupted when a patron opened fire at Geter and Davis.
Bridgeport Detective Jeffrey Holtz said a bullet grazed Merced as she fled from gunfire, something she denied.
"I got shot," Merced said, claiming her friend stared directly into her eyes and shot her.
"They [police] talking about how I just got grazed, no, the bullet went through my leg.
"And they're [police] saying I got shot trying to get away from - no, the boy that was supposed to be my friend, he looked at me and shot me."
'SAFE HAVEN'
Merced, who is out on bail, claimed the establishment was more like a social club and not a gambling hub as police had described.
"It was a social club where people came to hang out," she told The U.S. Sun.
"People came, they played games, watched TV, sports. People slept there when they didn’t have nowhere to sleep.
“It was a safe haven for people, that’s what it was supposed to be until someone changed their mind because they weren’t from that side of town.”
Merced was arrested on Tuesday during a traffic stop and charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree robbery and illegal gambling.
The U.S. Sun has reached out to Bridgeport police for comment.
The bullet went through my leg...The boy that was supposed to be my friend, he looked at me and shot me.
Shanica Merced
Merced's arrest marks the third person charged in connection with the illegal establishment.
In June, Bridgeport police arrested Marcus Farmer, 37, for his alleged role in running the gambling club.
Investigators said Farmer was inside the hub when the shooting occurred in March but is not believed to have been involved in the robbery.
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Farmer was charged with illegal gambling and stealing a gun from one of the suspects, according to police.
In May, Sean Ellan, 38, was also arrested for stealing a gun from one of the dead suspects, cops said.
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