Crazy Gambling Stories From September

The gambling world can sometimes produce really off-the-wall stories. Every month there are plenty of cases of individuals going to extreme lengths to pay back debts, or of simply bizarre behavior at casino properties around the globe. It can be entertaining and sometimes sad.

September 2018 was no exception, as there was plenty that happened in the casino world.

Here’s a look at some of the most colorful and/or noteworthy from the month that was.

Casino Worker Arrested For Dealing Private Poker Game On The Side

A Canadian casino north of Seattle could lose two employees after they were arrested for involvement in a private home poker game. According to CBC News, two women, who are both workers at the River Rock Casino, were arrested this past spring after police raided an alleged poker house. British Columbia’s anti-gang agency reportedly informed the province’s Gaming Policy Enforcement Branch about the presence of the two workers at the game. Great Canadian Gaming Corporation, which owns River Rock Casino, said in a statement that the incident could result in “termination” of their employment

‘LeBron James Of Poker’ No Superstar, Says Player

Underground illicit poker games are common in New York City, but authorities targeted just one of them in an early August indictment. The bust ensnared an India-born woman who allegedly referred to herself as the “LeBron James of poker.” Local and federal authorities said that Geeta “Mira” Singh was the “lead promoter” and manager of the poker room in a loft above a drug store in the West Village. Singh, who was based out of Atlanta and allegedly used the social networking site Meetup to find new players, was charged with six counts of promoting gambling. She pleaded not guilty.

Gambler Caught Cheating Tried To Bribe Agent With Big Macs, Authorities Say

An Indiana man was arrested in late July at the Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg for allegedly cheating at baccarat in the form of late betting. In other words, he tried to place a bet after the outcome of the game. The stakes were low, but it’s still a serious crime. The gambler, 34-year-old Justin Athey, denied trying to cheat the casino when confronted by an on-site agent with the state’s Gaming Commission. However, at some point Athey decided to try a different method to get off the hook.

Oregon Lottery Kept Quiet Glitch That Read Winning Tickets As Losers

A scandal has hit the Oregon Lottery after it failed to alert players that a temporary technical glitch was causing winning keno tickets to read as losing tickets. OregonLive.com reported that the Oregon Lottery’s keno game glitched for about six hours on July 23, and it didn’t shut down the game while technicians were fixing the issue. The Lottery reportedly never publicized the glitch, which impacted nearly 200 winning tickets. The Lottery is unable to obtain names of the affected customers, the report said. Players who still have their tickets from July 23 can rescan them and have up to a year to claim their winnings.

Police Swipe $10K In Casino Winnings From Couple Who Committed No Crime

Losing big on your way to the casino sure makes for a bad gambling road trip. A New Jersey couple finally retrieved about $10,500 worth of casino winnings that West Virginia state police took from them in a June traffic stop, according to a report from NJ.com. The couple—Dimitrios Patlias and Tonya Smith—were pulled over for allegedly swerving from their lane on the highway. After two hours, police finally left them off with a warning but took all but $2 of their cash. West Virginia was able to confiscate the money under what is known as civil asset forfeiture, a decades-long practice spanning administrations of both political parties.

Dealer Helped Players Cheat Casino Out Of $1M

A man who worked as a baccarat dealer at a Maryland casino pleaded guilty to helping players cheat the casino out of just over $1 million in exchange for a share of the proceeds. Ming Zhang of Alexandria, Virginia, faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison following his guilty plea in federal court to one count of conspiring to transport stolen funds. Zhang exposed part of a baccarat deck to a player who photographed the unshuffled cards before that player and other “conspirators” placed large bets on hands last September, a court filing says. Bettors can predict the outcome of baccarat hands “with near-perfect accuracy” if they know they order of cards in a deck.

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