Card Cheaters (CardCheaters.com) was a news source about gambling cheating and scams which was run by Gambling Incorporated (GamblingIncorporated.com) from January 2005 through February 2017. Although it continued to offer a newswire through December 2022, none of that was archived. Their archives are now available here.
Electro-slots
According to an Associated Press article four Russian citizens are being charged in St. Louis for cheating in ten casinos throughout the US, using electronic devices to exploit slot machines. Casinos affected are in St. Louis, Kansas City, Missouri, Illinois, and California. To read the December 10 article titled “4 Russian nationals accused of casino scheme” click: HERE. (12/2014)
Latent Blackjack Bets
According to an NJ Advance Media article a man was caught cheating at blackjack at the Sands Casino in Pennsylvania by placing bets late. The article reported that, “Further review of surveillance video showed [that he] had collected fraudulent wagers on at least three other occasions, according to police. [He] is facing charges of prohibited acts and theft by deception. He was taken to Northampton County Prison where bail was set at $15,000 with a 10 percent option. Police said Sands Casino is also seeking $255 in restitution.” To read the December 8 article by Alex Napoliello titled “Manville man tried to cheat while playing blackjack at Sands Casino, police say” click: HERE. (12/2014)
Cheating Casinos
An interesting story in BlackJack Champ discuses four methods that casinos used to use to cheat blackjack players. The methods discussed are ones exposed by Arnold Snyder and Mickey MacDougal with a mention of Steve Forte. Methods include: The Anchor Blackjack Strategy, The Turnover, The False Shuffle and Second Deal, and The Short Shoe. To read the December 2 article by Joseph Larsen titled, “4 Ways Casinos Cheated Customers According to Arnold Snyder” click: HERE.(12/2014)
A Bug In The System
A fascinating story ran in Wired Magazine that outlined how two men found a glitch in the Video Poker software that allowed them to receive multiple jackpots. A simple explanation of how it was exploited is explained, “The key to the glitch was that under just the right circumstances, you could switch denomination levels retroactively. That meant you could play at 1 cent per credit for hours, losing pocket change, until you finally got a good hand–like four aces or a royal flush. Then you could change to 50 cents a credit and fool the machine into re-awarding your payout at the new, higher denomination.” To read the October 7 article by Kevin Poulsen titled, “Finding a Video Poker Bug Made These Guys Rich–Then Vegas Made Them Pay” click: HERE.(10/2014)
Court Ruled Ivey A Cheater
A Daily Mail article takes an in-depth look at how Phil Ivey beat the Crockfords out of millions and the legal arguments used to justify the edge sorting, “Ivey said he sees it as the professional gambler’s job to ‘exploit the weaknesses’ of casinos, and try to even out the odds casinos always ensure are stacked in their favour. Edge-sorting, Ivey insisted in court, involves nothing more than using information available to any player simply from viewing the backs of the cards the casino chooses to use, and by making requests of the house which it is entitled to refuse…. Sadly for Ivey and ‘advantage players’ everywhere, Mr Justice Mitting, begged to differ. The judge, who admitted he has never been in a casino and sticks to bridge, commended the American on his truthfulness but ruled his actions amounted to ‘cheating for the purposes of civil law’.” To read the October 10 article by Tom Leonard titled “How a brilliantly cunning card sharp and his Chinese moll cheated a London casino out of £7million” click: HERE. (10/2014)
>>>For another take read the October 9 Washington Post article by Justin Moyer titled “Famed poker pro Phil Ivey, accused of cheating by casino, loses court case — and $12 million” click: HERE. (10/2014)
>>>For an ethics take read the October 10 ESPN article by Jeff Ma titled “Why Phil Ivey got a raw deal” click: HERE. (10/2014)
Out Of Retirement
According to a Star Tribune article, “A geriatric foursome [in their 70s] ran a quick and nominally profitable cheating scheme while playing poker at a Minnesota casino one night last summer, according to charges. …All four have rap sheets with convictions for cheating while gambling in other states spanning many years [since 1984]. …According to the charges: Three of the men sat at a three-card poker table, and while one of them distracted the dealer the other two, seated next to one another, palmed cards and swapped them under the table.” To read the August 23 article by Paul Walsh titled, “Charges: Geriatric poker foursome cheated casino” click: HERE. (08/2014)
Luminous Marked Cards In Play
An article in The Day reported that, “A man flagged by casino security officials as a ‘known card cheat’ pleaded guilty Wednesday in New London Superior Court to using invisible ink to mark cards at Mohegan Sun on Sept. 15, 2013.” The article also reported that he, “…has cheating convictions in Nevada, Iowa and Illinois and is facing charges in Baton Rouge, La.” The way he was caught was interesting, “The ink he was using could only be seen when the video was viewed in black and white. …The police removed from [his] jacket pocket a small piece of fabric with ink on it attached to a small piece of a dollar bill. [He] was wearing both eyeglasses and contact lenses, [he] admitted the contacts, ‘were designed to see things that you normally wouldn’t be able to see.'” To read the August 20 article by Karen Florin titled, “Known ‘card cheat’ admits using invisible ink to mark cards at Mohegan Sun” click: HERE. (8/2014)
>>>To read the August 22 New York Times article by James Baron titled, “The Invisible Ink Tha Wasn’t” Click: HERE. (8/2014)
More Edge Sorting
An article in The Day reported that, “Three gamblers are suing Foxwoods Resort Casino in federal court, claiming the casino owes them more than $1.1 million they won playing mini-baccarat in December 2011, as well as $1.6 million they had deposited with the casino to cover any losses. Foxwoods has refused to pay because it believes the three cheated.” One of the gamblers is Phil Ivy’s accomplice in the “edge-sorting” cases that are currently in litigation and the emphasis of the case is that “edge-sorting” should be legal. To read the August 11 article by Brian Hallenbeck titled, “Was trio gambling or cheating? $1.1 million at stake in lawsuit” click: HERE. (8/2014)
>>>To read the August 11 Cardplayer article by Brian Pempus titled, “Phil Ivey’s Alleged Accomplice In Borgata ‘Cheating’ Case Also ‘Edge-Sorted’ At Foxwoods” click: HERE. (8/2014)
Caught Using Real Name
One of Nevada Gaming Control Board’s seven most wanted offenders, was arrested on July 23 at the Sands in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He got caught when he used his real name to get a players card. A TribLive article spoke to Sal Piacente about the methods employed to cheat, “…capping, pinching and past-posting bets are longtime cheating methods that remain popular even with the availability of miniature cameras and computers. …Pinching, capping or past-posting does not require a magician’s sleight-of-hand skills but only a moment of distraction. ‘It’s a fast move. You act like you’re straightening your bets,’ he says. ‘When the dealer gets distracted, bam, he’s going to get hit over there.'” To read the August 3 article by Mark Gruetze titled, “Players Advantage: ‘Most wanted’ casino cheater used old tricks, police say” click: HERE. (8/2014)
>>>To read the July 27 Los Angeles Times article by John M. Glionna titled, “Mistake finally trips up ‘most-wanted’ cardsharp” click: HERE. (7/2014)
>>>To read the July 26 New York Times article by Dan Barry titled, “Sought in Vegas, a Swindler Is Dealt a Losing Hand Far From Home” click: HERE. (7/2014)
A Grand Opening Day
A Columbus Dispatch article reported that, “The last of 10 people charged with cheating at Hollywood Casino Columbus during its first weeks of operation has pleaded guilty to a casino gaming offense.” The article also names all of the others that were arrested, and for what, right after the casino opened in October 2012. To read the August 1 article by John Futty titled, “Judge sends casino cheater into drug program” click: HERE. (8/2014)
Three Known Cheaters
A BlackJack Champ article profiled three known cheaters and their methods. The premise was, “In blackjack, professionals use advantage play techniques like card counting systems to gain an advantage over the house. In luck-based games like slots and roulette, however, there isn’t much you can do to tip the scales in your favor. That’s where cheating comes in. We wouldn’t advise you to do it, as it’s easy to get caught and will result in a lifetime ban from any casino as well possible criminal charges. But some skillful cheats have used a range of genius techniques to beat the casino over the years.” To read the July 29 article by Joseph Larsen titled, “3 Famous Gamblers Who Cheated the Casinos out of Millions” click: HERE. (7/2014)
Repeat Offenses Of Past Posting
An Associated Press article reported that a man was sentenced to 17 years in state prison for cheating in three Atlantic City Casinos. According to the article, “Prosecutors introduced evidence that showed the 57-year-old Bayonne resident had posted bets at the craps tables after the dice had already come out. The incidents occurred at the Borgata, Resorts and Revel casinos last August. Bethea was convicted in 2001 and 2005 for similar crimes.” To read the June 13 article titled, “Bayonne man sentenced to 17 years for casino cheating” click: HERE. (6/2014)
Cheating Panel Discussion
CBS Las Vegas ran a story about an upcoming panel discussion about casino cheating at the Mob Museum in Las Vegas. The article reported that, “The panel will include George Joseph, the owner of Worldwide Casino Consulting, and an expert in gambling surveillance. …Joseph will join two other experts. …Joseph says he’s been there before cameras were installed, and watched the changes through the years. Now, everything is recorded.” To read the May 21 article by Dayna Roselli titled, “Mob Museum Holds Casino Cheating Panel” click: HERE. (5/2014)
Only Way Out
Roderick Dee [who is known to magicians as Rod The Hop] was removed from the notorious “Black Book” after his death. According to a Las Vegas Review-Journal article, “Dee, who became the first new member of the list in almost four years when the Nevada Gaming Commission made him the 34th entry last July, died in December. Earlier this month, the commission granted the control board’s request to remove Dee from the list. Death is the only way a person can be removed from the Black Book, which makes it a felony for that person to enter a Nevada casino.” To read the April 21 article by Howard Stutz titled “Convicted slot cheat included in Black Book dies” click: HERE. (04/2014)
>>>To read the official 4/17/14 GCB Notice click: HERE.
Chipgate Resolution
After three months of investigations the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement and The Borgata have released information about the resolution to the cancelled tournament in January that was flooded with counterfeit tournament chips. It appears that the entire cheating scandal was perpetrated by a single individual. The statements from both bodies discuss the distribution of the frozen funds that will be distributed as refunds to the affected players that busted out and a prize of $19,323 to each of the remaining 27 players. (2014/04)
>>>To read the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement’s official “Final Order” click: HERE.
>>>To read Borgata’s Resolution details click: HERE.
Ivy League Edge Sorting
According to the New Jersey Law Journal The Borgata has filed suit against Phil Ivy, his accomplice and Gemaco Inc. to recover 9.6 million dollars in losses at Baccarat. The article explains what happened in detail and points out that, “It is the automatic card shuffler that makes edge sorting possible, because it keeps all cards facing in the same direction. A dealer shuffling the cards by hand would turn part of the deck. During a 16-hour session at the table on April 11, 2012, Ivey won $2.4 million. [His partner] sat with him and she gave instructions to the dealer in Mandarin on how to lay down and flip over the cards. …Ivey told Borgata that he sought the special accommodations because he was superstitious, but Borgata says that was a pretext and his ‘true motive, intention and purpose in negotiating these playing arrangements was to create a situation in which he could surreptitiously manipulate what he knew to be a defect in the playing cards in order to gain an unfair advantage.'” To read the article by Charles Toutant titled, “Borgata Sues Baccarat High Roller For $9.6M Won Gaming the Deck” click: HERE. (04/2014)
Tournament Chip Upgrade
The Borgata Casino which hosted a tournament where counterfeit poker chips were found earlier this year has decided to take large tournament hosting seriously. According to an Associated Press article, “A cheating scandal at a casino poker tournament has led to new security measures, including chips that are more intricate, have more colors and include an authentication element that can be checked under ultraviolet light.” The article continued, “Part of the new security measures will include spot checks of chips in play during games. ‘We will be checking chips randomly throughout the day using a new process involving the UV lights,’ Lupo said. He described the checks as ‘part of the new normal.’ The Borgata also will add more staff and will do more chip counts each day during its tournaments.” To read the April 8 article titled, “Poker tournament gets high-tech chips after casino cheating scandal” click: HERE. (04/2014)
Daubing
A Straits Times article reported that a man, “…who is here on a social visit pass, used the ‘card daubing’ technique on high value cards so he would know which ones to bet on when playing games such as poker and blackjack. The 30-year-old applied coloured powdery substances to the back of playing cards when he got the chance to handle them. This was done either by hand, or using modified cash chips that would deliver the substances… But the ploy was discovered after he used a modified chip in a losing bet and a croupier noticed the irregularities on it.” To read the April 3 article by Ian Poh titled “Nepalese man jailed for cheating in casinos by marking cards” click: HERE. (04/2014)
Bridging A Cough
The Bridge world was rocked by cheating, again. A Mail Online article reported that, “…the usually sedate world of bridge was in turmoil over the news that two world champions have been found guilty of cheating… The Germans apparently cheated during both phases. They allegedly coughed during the bidding phase to reveal which suit they were weak in, giving them an unfair advantage. It’s claimed they then coughed again during the second phase of the game, indicating the best card to play.” After they were suspected of cheating the match was recorded and a “Subsequent computer analysis of the recordings apparently revealed the deception.” To read the March 30 article by Harry Mount titled, “What a pair of knaves!” click: HERE. (03/2014)
Cheating For Tips?
A Grand Forks Herald article reported that, Prosecutors said Tessin was cheating the house while dealing blackjack in TJ’s Sports Bar… making sure patrons won so he got bigger tips. The maximum prison sentence on the charge is five years if he was convicted. To read the March 12 article by Steve Lee titled “Man seeks deal in Grand Forks card cheating case” click: HERE. (03/2014)
Maryland Live Surveillance
A Washington Post article about the surveillance systems at the new Maryland Live Casino quoted their general manager, “A number of known cheaters came in and tried to take advantage of us, because we were a new operation… To prepare for the onslaught, Maryland Live brought in specialists skilled at finding scammers who had hit other casinos. The security agents began ejecting cheats that very night… They really ran at us for about a month,” Norton said, adding: “It hasn’t died down.” The article also quotes George Joseph about how security systems have changed since the 1970s. To read the February 22 article by J. Freedom du Lac titled “At Maryland Live Casino, relentless surveillance operation targets cheats, thieves” click: HERE. (02/2014)
Blackjack Counting Machine
A Cleveland ABC story reported that a man was indicted for cheating at the Horseshoe Casino in Downtown Cleveland. The article states that, “Officials from the prosecutor’s office said the agents had been contacted by a casino manager who observed Harvey on surveillance and thought he had some kind of card counting device… State officials said counting cards with a device has been illegal prior to the casinos opening in Ohio.” To read the February 21 article by Dena Greer titled “Man charged with cheating at Horseshoe Casino with card counter hidden in pocket” click: HERE. (02/2014)
Piling On Karabourniotis
A Ramona Patch article gave an update on the Archie Karas case which reported that they have surveillance videos of him marking cards during a blackjack game at the Barona Casino. The article concluded with, “Last year, Karl Bennison of the Nevada agency said they have investigated Karabourniotis multiple times, and arrested him on four occasions. He described the defendant as a ‘threat to the gaming industry in many jurisdictions.'” To read the February 6 article by Michelle Mowad titled “Hotshot Gambler Headed to Court for Allegedly Cheating at Barona Casino” click: HERE. (02/2014)
A Fatal Flush
An arrest was made in the Borgata case where T$800,000 in T$5,000 counterfeit chips were added to their tournament. According to a Press Of Atlantic City article, “Casino employees tackling plumbing problems at Harrah’s Resort last week discovered something more than a little unusual clogging the sewer pipes: $2.7 million in counterfeit Borgata poker chips that had been flushed down a toilet. …Spurred by the discovery at Harrah’s, Borgata employees later found an additional 160 forged chips… and regulators canceled the tournament.” In one of the many bizarre circumstances of this case a member of the 2+2 forum found a company in China who gave the perpetrator a quote for the counterfeit chips. That page can be seen by clicking HERE. To read the January 24 article by Jennifer Bogdan titled “$2.7 million in counterfeit poker chips found in Harrah’s sewer pipe” click: HERE. (01/2014)
Counterfeit ChipGate
Counterfeit T$5,000 chips were introduced into event #1 of the Borgata Winter Open. The tournament was originally suspended at the beginning of day 3 with 27 players left out of 4,812 entries. The following day the tournament was cancelled until the investigation is complete. An Associated Press article quoted Tom Ballance, Borgata’s president and chief operating officer, “Thus far, investigators have found that one or more tournament entrants improperly introduced a significant number of counterfeit chips into the tournament, gaining an unfair advantage and compromising the integrity of play for the event.” To read the January 18 article by Wayne Parry titled “Borgata ends fake chip-tainted NJ poker match” click: HERE. (01/2014)
