Casino heist movies such as Ocean’s 11 (and the slightly less successful sequels) may make the idea of robbing a casino seem like a glamorous escapade. The reality is that any kind of crime involves a fair bit of danger, personal risk, and mixing with people who really can’t be trusted – and it’s illegal and is likely to land you in jail.
In this article, as a cautionary tale, we share with you some of the stories of the biggest casino heists of all time.
The Biker Bandit
In 2010, Anthony Corleo stole $1.5 million worth of casino chips from the Bellagio casino in Las Vegas. It was a fairly brazen plan – Corleo (who was 29-years-old at the time), stormed up to the casino entrance on a motorcycle, walked up to the nearest gaming table, pulled out a handgun and forced the croupier to handover the gaming chips. Corleo was caught by police who tracked him down while he was trying to launder the stolen chips back through the Bellagio. He was jailed.
The Loomis Van
Heather Tallchief was the driver of a Loomis security van. In 1993 she drove away from the Circus Circus casino with $2.95 million in her armoured truck and she never looked back. Tallchief was on the run for 12 years before eventually turning herself in. She was sent to jail. Her boyfriend at the time, Roberto Solis, remained at large with the money.
The cashier cage
In 2000 the Bellagio’s cashier cage was robbed by two men (disguised by body armour) who jumped over the counter of the cashier cage and grabbed about $160,000 in cash and chips. Ultimately, the police arrested three men – Oscar Sanchez Cisneros; Jose Manuel Vigoa; and Luis Suarez. Two of the gang had robbed the cashier cage while the third had acted as look-out. It seems that Vigoa (a known bank robber) was caught on security camera without his mask, but it was the confession of Cisneros that triggered their conviction and imprisonment.
The Stardust theft
In 1992 a Stardust sports book cashier walked out of the door of the casino with about $500,000 in cash and chips. The suspect is believed to be William Brennan – he was never caught although there are rumours that he was working with an accomplice who subsequently killed him for the cash.
The Treasure of Treasure Island
There were a series of robberies targeting the Treasure Island casino in 2000. The police traced the attacks to brothers Reginald Johnson and Donnell Johnson. They were convicted of three robberies at Treasure Island and were imprisoned.
The geek robberies
In the 1970s, two physics students from the University of California created a device that could be concealed in their shoes – the device enabled them to interfere with the roulette wheels of the casinos that they targeted, giving them an unfair advantage over the casinos and delivering them big winnings. They were caught when their device short-circuited and caught on fire.
No matter how glamorous it seems, it is clear that when it comes to casino heists, crime doesn’t pay.
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