…but I decided against it. I haven’t seen anyone else report on it, so there’s a chance this is a * * CCMcC SUBSTACK EXCLUSIVE! * * But even if it’s not, it’s hilarious. And 100% real.
LAS VEGAS MAN ARRESTED FOR FELONY FRAUD OVER 30-CENT SLOT TICKET
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A Las Vegas was arrested at a Strip casino on November 9 after cashing out a slot machine voucher that wasn’t his—in the amount of 30 cents.
According to a preliminary report, two members of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department were walking the floor at the Casino Royale, located on the 3400 block of S. Las Vegas Blvd., acting as marked and uniformed patrol officers. They observed a man “systematically walking up and down the rows of slot machines and pressing the cash out button without putting any cash/credit in them.”
The suspect was seen attempting to cash out three different machines and he ultimately found one containing 30 cents and cashed it out. Police said that the man was in violation of NRS 465.070, Fraudulent Acts, “due to the fact that (redacted) did claim, collect or take, or attempt to claim, collect or take money or anything of value in or from a gambling game, with intent to defraud, without having made a wager contingent thereon, or to claim, collect or take an amount greater than the amount won.”
Editor’s note: Number of pennies worth of value on that ticket: 30. Number of words it took to explain the law that was broken: 53.
Upon making contact with the subject, police verified that he was in possession of the 30-cent ticket and advised him that it was illegal to claim the cash-out vouchers from machines he had not played.
Editor’s note: And then the cops said, ‘So knock it off and have a good night.’ Right? RIGHT?!?
Editor’s note in Morgan Freeman’s voice: “That is not, in fact, what the cops did next.”
“Due to the above facts and circumstances,” the police report noted, “(redacted) was placed under arrest for the charge of committing fraud in a gaming establishment, first offense.”
The suspect was taken to the Clark County Detention Center and booked on a felony fraud charge. During an initial appearance in Clark County Justice Court on November 10, the district attorney’s office filed a DA denial, indicating the office’s assessment that there was not enough evidence present to prosecute the case. The suspect was released from custody.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I hope that the suspect in that story is happy about how it went down in the end. He’s got an amazing Vegas story to tell over a slot ticket that couldn’t even pay for a stamp.