A thief that stole $1.6million worth of high denomination chips from a Vegas strip casino may never be able to redeem them. Nevada police are on the look out for Akingide Cole, a 31-year-old Floridian that stole the high value chips from The Venetian and thanks to the chips’ high value, the state and Las Vegas Sands are skeptical that anything more than $10,000 can be redeemed. Nevada Gaming Control Board Chief of Enforcement Jerry Markling told the Daily Mail: “In any of these thefts of chips, it’s very difficult to cash these in. Licensees generally know who their customers are.”
A spokesperson for LVS stated that internal protocol would flag up the chips and mean that Cole can only cash a maximum of $10k worth of his bounty. The Police haven’t disclosed how he broke into the room, other than that no weapon was involved and it’s the third high-profile case of stolen chips in the past couple of years.
One man not on the run is a Southern Californian resident sentenced to six years in jail for Baccarat fraud. Las Vegas Review Journal reports that De Rong Shang was sentenced to federal prison after defrauding Station Casinos out of $1,011,400 by running the baccarat credit scheme. He will pay that off in restitution and after the conviction was apologetic and told the judge: “I’m really sorry for what I did in the past. Your honor, I guarantee to you that for he rest of my life I will be a law-abiding citizen.”
Terry Johnson will replace Mark Lipparelli as the newest member of the Nevada Gaming Control Board. The LVRJ report Johnson, director of the Nevada Department of Business and Industry, will see out Lipparelli’s final two month term before being appointed by Governor Brian Sandoval for a full four-year term. Sandoval said in a statement. “Terry’s strategic leadership and innovative thinking has helped him effectively operate one of the more complex departments in state government. I have no doubt that his regulatory experience and public service background will serve as a strong foundation for this next step.”
A chairman of the board has still not been announced with one of the other two members likely to take up the role.
