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2016 News Archives |
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 Should
Poker Cheats Go After Bigger Fish?
An article in the Post Bulletin recounts a papering
event but also asks an interesting question, "My
biggest problem with poker cheats is the missed
potential that could have been directed toward more
meaningful pursuits. Because there have been some
genius attempts at scoring a free buck over the
years from those who probably could cure cancer if
they'd applied their smarts to medical science." To
read the December 30 article by Chuck Blount titled
"An old-school cheating method works on paper"
click:
HERE. (12/2016) |
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 Pennsylvania
Prosecutors To Ignore Cheaters
The district attorney in Pennsylvania threatens the
Sands Bethlehem Casino to pay their disputed taxes
or they will not pursue or arrest gambling cheaters.
A Legal US Poker Sites article reported that, "John
Morganelli, whose office handles county-level
prosecutions in matters involving Sands Bethlehem
Casino, gave the casino a warning it needed to pay
its taxes. If they did not, then Morganelli 'would
not feel honor bound' to prosecute a variety of
criminals who might try scams on the Bethlehem
casino. That includes anyone caught cheating or
passing bad checks at the casino. Morganelli wrote
in his letter to Mark Juliano that he ‘would not, in
good conscience, be able to justify the use of my
limited resources to help a profitable,
billion-dollar corporation while the Sands maintains
the position they are an island unto themselves.'"
To read the December 26 article by Steve Larson
titled "Pennsylvania District Attorney Sends Sands
Bethlehem Casino a Warning about Host Fee Payments"
click:
HERE. (12/2016) |
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 Another
Black Book Entry
A Las Vegas Sun article reports that a known
Blackjack cheater is about to be added to the
notorious Black Book. He already had, “…two felony
convictions in Nevada, one felony conviction in
Iowa, one in Connecticut and one in Louisiana,” said
James Taylor, deputy chief of the Nevada Gaming
Control Board’s enforcement division. “All of these
crimes involved marking cards on blackjack games.
The latest convictions were in 2014 when we started
considering him for the Black Book… The reputed card
cheat was added to New Jersey’s version of the list
early last year, also for attempting to swindle
casinos.” To read the December 22 story by Thomas
Moore titled “Gambler who marked cards on blackjack
games could be added to Black Book click:
HERE. (12/2016) |
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 Maryland
Casinos Ban Thousands Of Players
A News4 I-Team story reported that, "Maryland
casinos have evicted 3,600 players since casinos
began operation in the state in 2010, according to
an investigation by the News4 I-Team. Almost 200 of
those gamblers were booted for cheating, but the
state agency which oversees Maryland casinos does
not publicly disclose the reasoning for the other
evictions." The article concluded, "Maryland gaming
industry analyst James Karmel said local players
continue to attempt to cheat, despite well-known and
widely placed casino security and surveillance.
'Cheats still think they can scoot an extra chip
when they have a good hand and think they're going
to win,' Karmel said." To read and watch the
December 5 story by Scott MacFarlane titled
"Thousands of Gamblers Ejected From Maryland Casinos
Since 2010" click:
HERE. (12/2016) |
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 Ivy
vs. Crock Finale?
The latest rulings on the Phil Ivey case in the UK
is reported in The Guradian, "On Thursday in the
court of appeal, Lady Justice Arden said it was
common ground that there was an implied term in the
contract not to cheat and the meaning of cheating
for that purpose was to be determined in accordance
with the Gambling Act 2005… In particular the
actions which Mr Ivey took or caused to be taken had
a substantial effect on the odds in the game and
Crockfords were not aware of this at the relevant
time. In these circumstances, no lower standard
applied in this case because Mr Ivey was an
advantage player who was in an adversarial position
with the casino." Ivey countered, "The trial judge
said that I was not dishonest and the three appeal
judges agreed, but somehow the decision has gone
against me. Can someone tell me how you can have
honest cheating?" To read the November 3 article by
Nadia Khomami titled "Poker player loses appeal
against London casino over £7.7m winnings" click:
HERE. (11/2016) |
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 More
on Ivy And The Borg
A summary of the Ivey/Borgata case appeared in Poker
News where they reported that, "A federal judge has
ruled that Phil Ivey did not commit fraud with his
partner during a baccarat game at Borgata Hotel
Casino & Spa in Atlantic City in April 2014, but
that Ivey did breach casino contract, according to
NorthJersey.com." To read the October 21 article by
Katie Callahan titled "Court Opinion Split on Phil
Ivey's $9.6M Baccarat Win" click:
HERE. (10/2016) |
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 G2E
Cheating Trends
This year's Global Gaming Expo's cheating trends are
discussed in a Las Vegas Review-Journal article that
quotes several experts in the field. James Taylor
explained, "Between 250 to 500 casino employees are
arrested by the GCB each year, he said, making up
about 25 percent of all GCB arrests annually. Of
that 25 percent, 27 percent are table game
operators, 18 percent work in the cage, 3 percent
are security personnel, and 23 percent are in
management." Sal Piacente, explained, "For example,
dice-switching is still commonly used and still
difficult to catch. A cheater will switch the dice
being played on the table with dice that don’t have
any losing numbers, but they're typically only used
for two rolls during a game." To read the September
26 article by Nicole Raz titled "Basic casino
cheating scams hardest to catch, gaming experts say"
click:
HERE. (9/2016) |
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 Imaging
Cards
A creative system of stealing and photographing
cards to find out the order in Baccarat for more
than one million dollars. The Straits Times reported
that, "The group collaborated to steal a playing
card carrier from MBS casino on May 6, 2013, and
took it back to a hotel room, where the cards were
laid out, photographed, packed up and returned to
the same cabinet in the same place. The contents
were photographed without disrupting the card
sequence." To read the August 7, 2016 article by KC
Vijayan titled "13 Thais get jail for cheating
Singapore casino" click:
HERE. (8/2016) |
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 George
Devol Profiled
An interesting article about cheating and how its
perception evolved in gambling. The Poker News
article explained that, "This definition of a
"gambler" as both a risk-taker and a morally dubious
individual for whom cheating is just "part of the
game" would stick well into the 20th century, only
fading somewhat by the century's latter decades.
That's not to say cheating would disappear from
poker entirely, but the likelihood of a cheater
standing up proudly like Devol to narrate all of his
successful swindles diminished markedly." To read
the August 2, 2016 article by Martin Harris titled
"George Devol, the Ultimate Steamboat Sharp" click:
HERE. (8/2016) |
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 Dealer
Collusion
Three men are charged for cheating at Roulette at
the Horseshoe Casino in Council Bluffs. An Ashland
Gazette article reported that "…according to an
investigator’s affidavit filed in court. In all,
they allegedly split between $20,000 and $30,000.
The conspiracy involved the dealer and player moving
and adding additional chips to winning numbers, and
making and accepting late bets, the affidavit said."
To read the July 13, 2016 article titled "Trio
arrested for conspiring to cheat at Council Bluffs
casino" click:
HERE.
>>>To watch the July 3, 2016 WOWT News story
click:
HERE. (7/2016) |
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 Advantage
Play Champions
A very interesting and surprising (full of real
secrets) article appeared in the New York times
about 'advantage' play. The article reported that,
"Common advantage-play techniques include 'hole
carding,' in which sharp-eyed players profit from
careless dealers who unwittingly reveal tiny
portions of the cards; 'shuffle tracking,' or
memorizing strings of cards in order to predict when
specific cards will be dealt after they are next
shuffled; and counting systems that monitor already
dealt cards in order to estimate the value of those
that remain in the deck. Richard Munchkin, a
professional gambler who is the author of 'Gambling
Wizards' and a co-host of the radio show 'Gambling
With an Edge,' claims to have mastered all of these
techniques. 'I think every game can be beaten,' he
says." The article also take a detailed look at why
and how Cheung Yin Sun became known as "The Queen of
Sorts." To read the June 29, 2016 article by Michael
Kaplan titled "How 'Advantage Players' Game the
Casinos" click:
HERE. (6/2016) |
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 Gambling/Cheating
Auction
On May 21, 2016 Potter & Potter will run a gambling
auction with 549-lots titled, "Two Of A Kind." It
will feature the second half of Ronald Wohl's
lifelong collection/accumulation of gambling themed
books, equipment, prints and advertising. Many of
the items and cheating devices are very rare, gaffed
and difficult to find. It also includes a collection
of rare playing cards. For more about the auction
and to bid click:
HERE.
>>>To purchase a printed catalog from Gambling
Incorporated click: HERE.
(5/2016) |
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 Gaffed
Roulette Wheel
According to a Daily Mail article, "The secrets of
how the mob that controlled the Chicago underworld
fixed casinos has been discovered. A rare table,
uncovered by a games company owner from Guildford,
revealed how it was fitted with hidden buttons
driven by battery packs stuffed in the table legs
which disrupted the spin of the ball. By controlling
when the ball fell through tiny pins that tripped
it, the croupier could decide where the it fell on
the roulette table." To read the May 3, 2016 article
by Thomas Burrows titled, "Rigged roulette wheel
reveals how Al Capone and the Mob fixed casinos
during prohibition" click:
HERE. (5/2016) |
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 Ivy
UK Appeal Months Away
A Card Player article reported that, "Poker legend
Phil Ivey's appeal of a £7.8m ($11m USD) court
ruling that went against him in 2014 will likely be
resolved by September, Card Player was told by a
spokesperson for the 10-time WSOP bracelet winner…
According to a report from Bloomberg, Ivey, a
sure-fire bet for the Poker Hall of Fame now that he
turned 40 years old, was in the London courtroom
Wednesday to help his legal team's efforts to get
the ruling overturned." To read the April 15, 2016
article titled, "Ruling On Poker Pro Phil Ivey's
'Cheating' Appeal Likely To Come Within 4 Months"
click:
HERE. (4/2016) |
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 8-10
For Craps Cheats
The multi-year craps scam at the Bellagio gets a
resolution with the accomplices getting 8-10 year
prison sentences. A Casino-Org article explains
that, “During the trial, the court heard that the
two croupiers had allowed their accomplices to place
bogus bets at the craps tables at times when there
were few gamblers around and the games were subject
to lower levels of scrutiny… Investigators also said
that one series of winning bets defied odds of
452-billion to 1." To read the April 13, 2016
article by Katie Barlowe titled, “Bellagio Craps
Cheaters Get Lengthy Sentences" click:
HERE. (4/2016) |
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 Collusion
A nice article about collusion in Poker appears in
PokerNews that explains, "Collusion is a type of
cheating that involves one player working with
another player or players to gain an advantage by
coordinating betting action at the table. Players
arrange to maximize their profit from the game by
raising, folding, or calling in conjunction with
another player's betting action, sharing their
profit with each other after they leave the game."
The article also gives tips on spotting it and
dealing with it. To read the April 3, 2016 article
by Ashley Adams titled, "Protecting Yourself Against
Cheating in Home Games: Collusion" click:
HERE. (4/2016) |
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 Dealer's
Choice
A Detroit News article reports that, "A former
MotorCity Casino dealer is accused of conspiring
with six associates in a cheating conspiracy
involving hundreds of dollars, according to Michigan
Attorney General… [He], was employed at the Detroit
casino in 2014, when he allegedly made payouts on
losing bets and declined to collect payment on lost
bets during games of Texas Hold 'em, Schuette said."
To read the February 25, 2016 article by Holly
Fournier titled, "7 charged in cheating conspiracy
at MotorCity Casino" click:
HERE. (2/2016) |
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 Turned
In The Bathroom
A Times Leader article reported that, "A former
dealer at Mohegan Sun Pocono pleaded guilty Tuesday
to conspiring with players to rig a tile betting
game that cheated the Plains Township casino out of
more than $17,000… State police working in the
casino's gaming enforcement office witnessed Laird
give himself losing hands and pay off the winners,
which totalled $17,710 in losses to the casino." To
read the January 5, 2016 article by Joe Dolinsky
titled, "Former Mohegan Sun Pocono dealer pleads
guilty to cheating casino out of 17k" click:
HERE. (1/2016) |
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