Eight people have been arrested in Rockland County on June 11, on charges of operating a large-scale gambling and loan sharking operation in Rockland and Westchester counties, New York City, Long Island, Pennsylvania and Florida.

The arrests concluded a 10-month undercover investigation, labeled “Operation Rock Bottom,” into illegal loan sharking activity, as well as an illegal gambling operation which had associations to organized crime in Rockland County.

“Illegal gambling has always been the fuel that drives organized crime because of the huge profits it generates, which are often used to fund other forms of criminal activity, including drug trafficking and prostitution,” said Rockland County District Attorney Thomas Zugibe in a prepared statement. “Illegal gambling is not a victimless crime.”

All eight have been accused of collecting bets, as well as offering loans with 25% interest rates on a weekly or bi-weekly payment basis, pressuring the borrower.