The industry trends aren’t a secret—the availability, accessibility, and advancement of reliable and robust technology, coupled with the increased investment in casino security and compliance, are a huge focus for casinos today.
Yet, today’s trends also show another pattern: the prevalence of casino scams.
In fact, since the dawn of 2023, casino scams have been on the rise, and continue to climb.
But why? And furthermore, what can casinos do about it?
In this article, we will highlight some of the most notorious casino scams that have taken place thus far in 2023, and what casinos can do to mitigate employee theft risks.
Top 3 Casino Scams in 2023
At the time of this writing, here are some examples of the top casino scams thus far in 2023:
In March 2023, a Monarch Casino Resort and Spa cashier stole upwards of $500,000 in cash at this Colorado casino. Although the cashier was convicted and jailed, how the cashier was able to walk away with that much cash is still unknown, and continues to be an investigation. This was among the highest and most notable heists in Colorado casinos since 1991.
At the beginning of April 2023, a Bankers Casino employee was suspected of stealing over $95,000 in cash. Police later found nearly $65,000 in cash at the suspect’s home, along with a number of other items they believe the suspect purchased with the cash. Police also claim that the suspect walked into the casino through the main entrance, went directly to the cash location, and began loading cash into his backpack.
At the end of February 2023, eight players at a Pennsylvania casino were caught “dice sliding”. It is unknown whether or not the dealer was involved in this particular scam; however, in many cases, dealers are involved in the act. In fact, according to this article published by the CDC Gaming Report, “dealer-player collusion outweighs single cheaters by two to one”.
Casino Scams Are on the Rise… But Why?
Despite some casinos’ greatest efforts in staffing casino floors, function halls, entrances and exits, the most common types of casino thefts lie in waiting, lurking and residing within the casino’s four walls, and amongst casino employees.
They are your dealers, players, and even your bartenders. Casino employee theft is more common than casino management is willing to admit. However, the facts are cold, hard, and real.
So this begs the question, why are casino scams occurring? Industry experts claimed at the World Game Protection Conference held at the Tropicana Las Vegas during the first week of March 2023 that the most common reasons are the following:
- Security staffing shortages
- Increased casino profits (and therefore an increase in fraud, cheating, stealing, and other scams)
- Old-school games and new electronics
According to this article published by the CDC Gaming Reports, a former United States military spy told casino-surveillance executives that the threats and vulnerabilities they face will only worsen as the industry continues to grow. In fact, the industry is projected to grow by $12 billion over the next several years.
What Can Casinos Do to Prevent Scams and Casino Employee Theft?
So what can your casino do to prevent casino employee theft?
- Be on the lookout for the most common signs of casino employee theft
- Implement a solution for monitoring behaviors and patterns
- Adopt continuous improvement, frequently changing processes and systems
- Adopt a system to help with risk management