Several Accused Of Laundering Marijuana Profits Through Slot Machines At Kansas CasinoTwo Defendants Face Decades In Prison For Alleged Crimes |
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Several people in the state of Kansas have been accused of laundering $200,000 in profits from selling marijuana through slot machines at a local casino.
The accused in the federal case that resulted in a grand jury are Gregory Rapp, 30, Denise Hurla, 50, Christopher Anderson, 30, Kenneth Stewart, 33, and Jeffrey Selectman, 29.
Documents filed in the case allege the investigation began when the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission contacted the Kansas Bureau of Investigation about suspicious gambling activity at the Hollywood Casino in Kansas City, Kan.
Rapp and others allegedly were observed depositing large sums of money in small denominations into slot machines throughout the casino. They allegedly did not play the machines or wager any money and then cashed out, receiving a ticket voucher. According to the feds, they then cashed the tickets throughout the casino at automated teller machines.
According to the government, this is how they were caught:
In November 2013, investigators determined Rapp had not claimed any Kansas earnings or wages since the third quarter of 2011, when he said he was employed at a Jiffy Lube in Overland Park, Kan. Beginning in January 2014 investigators working undercover bought more than two pounds of marijuana from the traffickers. In February 2014 one of the traffickers showed an undercover officer how to launder drug proceeds though slot machines using $18,000 in KBI evidence buy funds.
Rapp faces up to 60 years in prison, if convicted. Anderson could see 30; Stewart could receive 10, while Selectman and Hurla could both receive five for “conspiracy to distribute marijuana.”