Las Vegas Police Give New Details in String of Off-Strip Casino Robberies
Posted on: January 19, 2023, 05:00h.
Last updated on: January 19, 2023, 05:25h.
Las Vegas police have released images of an individual suspected of committing four robberies at off-Strip casinos in November and December.
A Metro Police news release was accompanied by footage of the suspect caught on security video in the hope that the public throw some light on his identity. He is described as being between 6’1” and 6’3” and about 25 to 35 years old.
The individual in the video is seen wearing a black mask, hooded sweatshirt, and black gloves. The suspect is believed to have robbed the cashier’s cage at the Gold Coast on November 16, making off with a reported $30K.
On December 12, the same suspect is believed to have hit up the Green Valley Ranch in Henderson and then the Silverton on December 20. Investigators believe his most recent target was the Rampart in Henderson on Christmas Eve.
Each time the robber targeted the cashier’s cage. In three of the heists, no weapon was shown, according to police.
The suspect has also been witnessed driving two vehicles, both stolen – a dark gray Chevrolet Cruze with Nevada license plate 039V61 and a silver Mazda with Nevada plate 902M64, police said.
Robbery Spree
The crimes form part of an unusually high spate of robberies targeting casino cashier cages in Las Vegas over the past few months.
On November 9, 25-year-old Zubaid Al Jarmi robbed the cage at Resorts World of $6,000 after threatening to shoot the cashier. Al Jarmi was arrested a week later. He had previously been convicted of robbing the Venetian back in 2020.
Then, on January 8, 37-year-old James Booth attempted to rob the cage at Caesars Palace. He was handed $4,000, but the cashier managed to hit the panic button without Booth’s knowledge. The would-be robber was arrested by police in Caesars’ valet area.
Despite being heavily surveilled, Las Vegas casinos’ famous open-door policy, as well as the amount of cash that changes hands inside, makes them tempting targets for robbers.
Meanwhile, casinos across the country employ a de-escalation policy, which means complying with robbers’ demands, rather than allowing the situation to get violent or deadly.
That at least gives a felon a chance of walking out of the venue with the loot, although maybe not as much as they hoped, since a casino cage will not typically hold hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash at any one time.
Casinos prefer to let their surveillance technology and law enforcement take it from there.
Bellagio Bandit
The most notorious Las Vegas casino robbery happened in 2010. It involved a daredevil crook riding a motorcycle up the Bellagio’s valet stand before stealing $1.5 million in chips from the high-stakes craps tables. The perp, the son of a Las Vegas judge, then got back on his bike and sped off into the night.
Anthony Carleo later checked himself into the Bellagio, where he lived and gambled like a king on his stolen chips, enjoying comped rooms, meals, and drinks as a VIP gambler.
But he was arrested while trying to sell several $25,000 denomination chips to an undercover police officer. He was ultimately sentenced to six to 16 years in prison.
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Source: casino.org
