Police questioned social media influencer and professional gambler Mikki Mase and three other men after neighbors reported gunshots in a Chatsworth neighborhood on Sunday evening, according to news reports.
Mase, whose real name is Michael Meiterman, garnered a reputation as a professional gambler, boasting his winnings on social media and in the recent Discovery documentary series “Hustlers Gamblers Crooks.” In a segment titled “The Moment I Won $4.5 Million,” Mase describes how he won millions playing baccarat across multiple Las Vegas casinos.
He was in the spotlight again Sunday when police responded to the 29000 block of Santa Susana Pass Road after residents reported hearing gunshots around 10:30 p.m., according to LAPD Officer Jayder Chavez. Video from KeyNews.TV shows LAPD officers carrying rifles while wearing tactical helmets at the scene near Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park, where police were approached by four men walking along the road. Police ordered the men to approach with their hands above their heads before they were handcuffed and questioned by officers, according to video from the scene.
The men were released a short time later, Chavez said, and no evidence was found at the scene. Police did not identify any of the men.
“It’s not a crime to walk on a public walkway,” Mase said when reached by phone Monday. “We were not on private property. I saw a firework fired earlier in the night and thought it was weird, but thought if I lived out here I might do the same thing.”
He alleged that police officers pointed their guns at him and the three other men before they were able to ask why they were being detained. He did not say why he was in the area Sunday evening.
