NBC - A volunteer waitress and a widowed great-grandmother who tends bar at the Lake Elsinore Elks Lodge are due in court later this month after pleading not guilty to misdemeanor charges of operating an illegal gambling operation.

Margaret Hamblin, 73, and 39-year-old Cari Gardner, who donates her time as a waitress at the lodge, face up to one year in jail and a $5,000 fine for allegedly running a $50 football pool at the facility, the Press-Enterprise reported.

The charges stem from a Nov. 20 investigation by state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control agents into an anonymous tip that lodge members bet on NFL games.

Behind the bar, the armed agents found an envelope with $5 from each of the 10 members taking part in the pool. The person who came closest to guessing the combined score of the Jacksonville Jaguars and the New York Giants was to pocket the contents, according to the Press-Enterprise.

"It was just regular 'Monday Night Football,' " said Hamblin, who has tended bar for 40 years, six of them at the lodge.”We were sitting at the bar, and the gang wanted to do something," she said, according to the newspaper.

Timothy Clark, who heads the department's Riverside district, which issued the citations, said football pools "are a violation of the law, and we will take whatever we feel is appropriate action to ensure compliance by our licensees,"

I know what everybody is thinking here.  The cops are being a little bit ridiculous right?   I mean it was a 5 dollar pool and the lady who ran this gambling ring was a 73 year old lady named Margaret.  Did they really have to raid the place?   Well I say yes!   It starts with a little Monday Night Football pool and the next thing you know she’s shaking people down at bingo and running white cards out of her retirement home.    Somebody needed to make an example out of this old bag before it was too late.   Thank god for the good people of the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.  I don't think it's a stretch to call them heros.

Clearly the most intriguing part of this story is the person who tipped off the authorities.  This has to be the biggest loser on the face of the planet.  Sure, I’ve thought about placing an anonymous tip to the authorities about my bookie before, but I was down 20 large at the time, not 50 bucks.    As a side note, I wonder what the agents said when they found the envelope filled with cash/50 bucks?  Were they like “jackpot?”