The New York State Racing and Wagering Board on Thursday revoked the charitable gaming licenses of the Syracuse Brigadiers for a year, shutting down the multimillion-dollar bingo operation that supports a drum and bugle corps with five national championships over the past eight years.

The two members of the board said during their ruling in Albany they concurred with a hearing officer who concluded the Brigadiers were guilty of all 28 charges of charitable gaming rules violations brought against them.

The charges include paying people to conduct bingo sessions, improperly spending bingo earnings and organizing the bingo operation in violation of state regulations.

The board also ruled that all members of the Brigadiers who were involved in those bingo violations will be prohibited from participating in charitable gaming in the future. The board would not immediately identify those people.

Brigadiers officials expressed disbelief and anger about the ruling and vowed to pursue a court challenge, if possible.

State Racing and Wagering Board Chairman Michael J. Hoblock, Jr. said Brigadier Hall essentially became a huge bingo operation, with a drum and bugle corps attached, rather than a 0 charity simply using bingo money for its cause.

"This is probably the closest to commercialized gambling that I've ever seen an organization go," he said.

"When people start putting money in their pockets in the name of charity gaming, we've got to put a stop to it," he added.

Brigadier representatives were visibly shocked when Hoblock used the harsh language in his ruling. Four Brigadiers officials engaged in a heated argument with Racing and Wagering board staff for nearly an hour in a closed room after the meeting.

"When they referred to us as bad guys, that's just not the case," said Gary Frost, president of the Syracuse Brigadiers Alumni Club

The ruling affected his group, the Syracuse Brigadiers Drum and Bugle Corps and the Syracuse Brigadiers Booster Club, three separately incorporated nonprofits under the umbrella of Syracuse Brigadiers, Inc.

Joe Geswaldo, chief financial officer of Syracuse Brigadiers Inc., said the organizations always viewed the difficulties they had with the Racing and Wagering Board as different interpretations of confusing rules, not deliberate misconduct.

He was incensed over remarks by Hoblock and Racing and Wagering Board staff that the Brigadiers made no efforts to fix problems.

"We worked diligently to comply and do everything they expected us to do," he said.

Both Geswaldo and Frost said the worst they were expecting from the board was a fine and the suspension of one of the three bingo licenses.

The only way to appeal the board's ruling is through the state Supreme Court.

"We definitely are going to pursue any legal avenues we have," Geswaldo said after an impromptu Brigadiers meeting Thursday night.

Stacey Clifford, speaking for the Racing and Wagering Board, said that within a day or two the Brigadiers will receive formal findings and an order revoking their gaming licenses.

Geswaldo said he hoped the order wouldn't arrive until after the weekend, allowing the Brigadiers to earn enough money to pay current bills. Seven sessions are scheduled Friday through Sunday.

He wouldn't speculate on whether a drum and bugle corps could be fielded next summer without bingo money.

The Brigadiers reported gross gaming receipts as high as $4.4 million in 2003, with income of $1.6 million after prizes and related gaming expenses. They spent $879,854 to equip and train the corps and compete that year, with the remaining going to support the bingo operation and corps administration.

Geswaldo said receipts are down considerably this year and only about $280,000 was spent to field the corps, which came in second in national Drum Corps Associates competition for the second straight year after three consecutive championships.

The three Brigadier groups have been conducting nine bingo sessions a week over the course of four days. Our Lady of Pompei Church uses the hall at 1860 W. Fayette St. on Mondays for a 10th session.

The state's order will shut down Brigadier bingo immediately but state officials said they will grant the church 30 days to find a new home, a concession that will be moot if the Brigadiers cannot afford to keep the hall open just for them.

The Brigadiers first leased the vacant supermarket on the city's West Side in 1997 for its headquarters and bingo hall. Bingo there immediately became a success, raising complaints from smaller charities that had difficulty competing for players.

The administration of former Mayor Roy Bernardi engaged in running regulatory battles with the bingo operation and his corporation counsel then, Frederick "Rick" Guy, said the city intended to rein in the Brigadiers to protect smaller charity bingo games.

The Brigadiers have had no such complaints from mayor Matt Driscoll's administration.