Calif. Poker Bust: Can someone tell me why?

Here's a news article about a poker bust in my state:

San Jose Mercury News - Cops raid poker game in San Mateo home

Can someone tell me what law they broke? I thought home games were legal in our state. Was the buy-in too high? Or is it because of the "refreshment" fee? How is that "false pretenses"? Is it because you have to pay the fee whether you drink or not?

Sure, these people were stupid for attracting so much attention to their house (web ads, parking problems), but it still makes me a bit scared to have a home game at my place now.

I think it was the "refreshment fee" that they got into trouble for, not hosting a game.

They were causing a disruption to their neighbors who called the cops. When the cops investigation found that the game was being raked (the refreshment fee) they busted it. Pretty standard.

They shouldnt have drawn so much attention to their game.

And yeah a refreshment fee aka rake isnt too smart.

its because of fees
but i live in a country were there is basically no law, so if i wanted to charge some people 5000$ to ply at my house, i can because the police just dont care anymore
kinda sad actually

$1300 LOL that is all the cash they got, wow for a 3 month investigation the cost must have been $20,000 or more, what a waste of resources.