The man accused of robbing the Bellagio casino in Las Vegas last week appeared in court on Wednesday wearing a spit shield. Scott Carmitchel (pictured left), a 34-year-old Kansas native previously convicted for making a criminal threat, was arrested late Saturday night in a room at the Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas where he was found with several prostitutes, $10k of the $43,500 he allegedly stole from a Bellagio cashier window and a 6mm BB handgun with an orange tip. Police said the gun was the same type seen on surveillance video and Carmitchel was wearing the same shirt as the suspect in the video.
Police also detained four women that attempted to flee Carmitchel’s hotel room when the law arrived. The four were carrying an additional $7k they said Carmitchel had given them in exchange for what must have been a very entertaining evening indeed. The working girls said Carmitchel had also taken them shopping for clothes at the Forum Shops in Caesars Palace.
Carmitchel reportedly paid a tourist $300 to rent him a $405 hotel room at the Hard Rock because Carmitchel claimed not to have any identification on his person. Smelling a rat, the tourist subsequently alerted police as to Carmitchel’s whereabouts and police put a watch on the property.
At the time of his arrest, Carmitchel claimed that he’d found the thousands of dollars – some of it still wrapped in bands labeled ‘Bellagio Count Team’ – in a backpack in a casino parking lot. A convicted felon who skipped parole in Kansas two months ago, Carmitchel was described as “combative with officers throughout the booking process” and demonstrated “erratic’ behavior during questioning. Carmitchel denied having taken any drugs or alcohol but one of the ho’s said Carmitchel had marijuana in the room.
Police claim to have linked Carmitchel to a second robbery involving a City National Bank on July 22. Jesse Jones, who was previously named a person of interest in the Bellagio case, is no longer considered connected to the Bellagio robbery but remains a person of interest in the bank job.
On Tuesday, Carmitchel appeared in Clark County Justice Court in a wheelchair, covered in a blanket and wearing a spit guard over his mouth. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that Carmitchel, who had originally refused to attend his hearing, was ordered by Judge Joseph Bonaventure to appear “by any force necessary.” Carmitchel said nothing as federal charges of armed bank robbery and interference with commerce by robbery were read out in court. Carmitchel’s preliminary court hearing will go down August 13.
