Over decades, criminals have found innovative ways to pull the wool over casinos’ eyes and then walk away with big winnings. Though not all were able to pull off their stunts for long, some famous casino criminals did manage to walk away with millions of dollars for a long time.
Casino Crime
Insane True Casino Crime Stories
Fill a room full of flashing lights, loud noises and loads of cash, and what are you most likely going to attract? Criminal masterminds! Casino heists are common in the industry, and while many perpetrators have snatched the cash and chips never to be seen again, the same cannot be said for the following casino crime participants.
At EjWagner-CrimeHistorian.com we have taken a special interest in crime which occurs in the land-based casino and gambling environments, and not only do we report on gambling crime history, but we also provide the last casino crime news.
Casino Crime News 2009: ‘Mr Casino’
Even though Richard Taylor’s crimes eventually caught up with him, he could definitely be categorised as a criminal mastermind, and he was so successful at scamming casinos that he earned himself the nickname Mr Casino. Taylor focused on high roller play at the craps table and set up an elaborate network of players and dealers that would allow small rule breaches to occur seemingly unnoticed. After a while, these small rule breaches added up to $700,000 worth of losses from just two casinos and Taylor was eventually caught and sentenced to several decades in prison.
Casino Crime 1992: The Stardust Heist
Bill Brennan was just your average cashier at The Stardust Casino and there was honestly nothing remarkable about him – or so his employers thought. While Brennan was most certainly no criminal mastermind, his ability to remain calm under pressure certainly aided in his plan. In September, 1992, Brennan placed $500,000 worth of casino cash into his backpack and calmly walked out of the casino on his lunchbreak. What truly makes this true crime casino story Hollywood-worthy is the fact that Brennan has never been found, and it would appear that he simply vanished.
Casino Crime News 2010: Berlin Poker Heist
March 2010 saw some of the biggest names in the world of professional poker descend upon Berlin to play for a €1 million prize. As the tournament kicked off, armed men in balaclava’s stormed the venue in order to get their hands on the money, and panic erupted. Hundreds of spectators and tournament participants were trampled while attempting to flee the scene and the robbers got away with almost €200,000 without harming a single patron. However, several people were injured during the panicked stampede, and to make matters worse, the entire robbery was streamed live online as part of the media coverage of the event.
Casino Crime 2006: The Trash-Bag Cashier
Much like Bill Brennan, Elizabeth Williams is another example of a humble, bog-standard casino employee attempting to stick it to the man – except she was caught in the act. Apparently Williams didn’t give the whole robbery much thought as she emptied $50,000 from gambling machines into black trash-bags directly in front of the casino’s security cameras. She may have even gotten away with it if her employers hadn’t noticed that Williams calmly walked out of the casino with 3 trash bags, but only 2 of them ended up in the dumpster, prompting them to check the security cameras.
Latest Casino Crime News
If true casino and gambling crime fascinates you, then you’ve come to the right place. Not only do we focus on casino heists from days past at EjWagner-CrimeHistorian.com but we also provide our readers in Canada and New Zealand with the latest casino crime news and casino cheaters.
History’s Largest Illegal Gambling Rings
It often seems like something that can only happen in the movies or in a book, but large, organised illegal gambling rings are very much a part of modern history, and there have been groups so large that they have impacted the gambling industry as a whole.
Money Laundering In Casinos
Money laundering is one of the biggest bottlenecks for criminals today. Turning dirty money into clean money holds the most frequent failures for criminals, leading to arrests for all natures of crimes. Estimates for the amount of money laundered globally is in excess of 3% of the world’s GDP.
Casino Mysteries That Were Never Solved
Today, most gambling happens online. But there was a time when the casinos of Las Vegas, Monte Carlo, and beyond, were went folks went when they wanted to have a good time away from home.
Actions To Take After Being Caught Gambling Illegally
For most of the world, gambling is an accepted and legal pastime that hundreds of millions enjoy every day, both at land-based casinos as well as online. But this doesn’t meaning that gambling is legal everywhere, and countries that tend to have stricter governments will also often mean that some activities are not available for citizens to play, at least not legally.
How To Spot A Card Counter At A Casino
Once just an underground practice, the practice of card counting has gradually made its way into the mainstream consciousness over the past number of years. Thanks in a large part to hit movies such as 21 and books such as Bringing Down the House, most individuals are at least somewhat familiar with the MIT Blackjack Team and the card counting strategies that they used to beat casinos for big bucks all around the world.
Most Brazen Las Vegas Casino Robberies
When most of us think of casino heists, they exist only in movies, TV shows, books, and video games. These ones, however, are very real events that took place and various houses of chance around the world.
How To Win When Playing Slots
Slot machines always look so attractive. Their bright lights, fun sound effects, the promise of a large jackpot, and the ease with which you could win. The problem is, they are almost always stacked slightly in the favour of the house. However, this doesn’t mean that you can’t win, and it certainly doesn’t mean that you can’t win big.
The Best Movies About Gambling
The world of casinos and gambling has long been a fascination of many storytellers working in Hollywood over the years. The list of movies, good and bad, that are set in this industry is long and quite varied. It must be something to do with the thrill of the stakes – winning or losing.
Law-Breaking Gamblers from the Wild West
The Frontier Gambler is one of the most recognisable characters from 19th-century America. Historically well-represented by both sexes, they found their way to the gaming tables from a range of geographical backgrounds, professions, and social classes, and were frequently of a different nationality since the USA was still so young.