Well organized groups scamming slots

November 26

The Mississippi gaming authorities have announced an array of cheating at Tunica's slot machines. This year alone, over six arrests have been made of progressively more advanced slot criminals.

This type of crime is very familiar to most casino operators. Many pilferers are equipped with such high tech, custom-made devices that disorder the computers inside the machines that cause the machine to make pay-outs when there is, in fact, no winning reason to.

The devices that are sold on the black market and being used by most of the scam artists are known as magic wands, kickstands, and even such names as monkey paws. These types of slot deception aides have been reported to fetch as much as $25,000.

The slot scammers will usually work in pairs or small groups and go from slot to slot, copping a couple hundred dollars at a time. Usually taking only a total of 4-6 grand a night total from each casino, in order to remain under the radar of many casinos. This type of action suggests a well organized, non-impulsive behavior.

Most of the time, to get caught, the scam artists have to basically empty a machine or lock it up somehow, causing an attendant to come, then suspecting something is not right, they call surveillance. This is how a group of alleged thieves were trapped at the Hollywood Casino in August.

The group's assumed leader, William Drew, was caught with a magic wand, a device with a tiny light that blinds the internal optical readers of slot machines. Drew is 61 years old.

He and the others are now charged with three counts of violating the state's gaming laws, all felonies, and were freed on a $15,000 bond pending their court appearance in front of a grand jury.

They are said to be from Tulsa, Oklahoma, were their operations are probably based out of. It is reported that the devices have been purchasable in that area as well.

They are even said to part of a bigger group of thieves operating all over the country that is capable of draining as much as a thousand dollars an hour out slot machines.