Everyone hopes to go Las Vegas and come back a millionaire by playing slots or endless games of poker. Some people, however, have different ideas as to how to make bank. Today we will tell you about these people who committed the most infamous heists all over map of casinos in Las Vegas
Half of these robberies occurred in the late 20th century, and the latter half occurred a bit more recently. We’ll discuss them chronologically to track the history of robberies in Las Vegas casinos. They surely make for some high-end entertainment.
The MIT Blackjack Team
We’re starting with perhaps the tamest case, but one of the most fascinating ones, that of the MIT Blackjack Team. The team was made of college students from MIT, and later Harvard and other universities, who were recruited by a professional blackjack player, J.P. Messar. He taught them how to play blackjack better and how to count cards.
They first tested the strategy in Atlantic City in 1979, and then graduated to Las Vegas, and later even led a “European invasion”. There were multiple teams at one point and it’s estimated that they made between $22 million and $57 million in the span of 20 years. While card counting is not illegal, casinos treat it as if it is.
The Eudaemons
The Eudaemons were a group of physicists from California who created a device that could predict where the ball would fall on a roulette wheel. After all, if the US President could cheat the whole country, why couldn’t they?
The device included a microcomputer (hid in the observer’s shoe) that was fed data about roulette games. The computer would then relay signals to another device (attached to the bettor’s chest).
The device didn’t accurately predict every outcome, but it significantly skewed the odds. The group went to a few casinos in Las Vegas in 1978 to test the system. Their profit was around 44% for every dollar betted. It’s estimated they made around $10,000 that way before they disbanded. While not a heist, this is still next-level cheating.
Stardust
Stardust Casino in Las Vegas was hit twice in two consecutive years – 1991 and 1992. The craziest part was that the robberies were committed by the same man, Royal Hopper, who worked as a security guard. In 1991, he tasked his two sons with the robbery; they stole $150,000 and weren’t caught.
Seeing his first plan worked, Hopper planned another heist six months later. This time the robbers took $1.1 million and used smoke bombs as distraction. They, however, used the employee’s entrance to exit the casino, which aroused suspicion it was an inside job and Hopper was questioned by the police and later charged with the crime.
We’re starting to wonder how Stardust treated its employees, because another employee, Bill Brennan, who worked as a sportsbook cashier, made the run with $500,000 from the money he was supposed to deposit, again in 1992. Brennan remains en-large and has become a sort of legend in Las Vegas casinos.
Circus Circus
The Circus Circus robbery of 1993 is one of the most daring robberies, which might make the textbooks on 20th century American history one day; it already made it to Netflix in its docuseries Heist.
A naïve 21-year-old woman, Heather Tallchief, robbed the casino of $3.1 million with her boyfriend, Roberto Solis, who was a convicted murderer that had committed robberies before. Tallchief found a job for an armored vehicle company. The car was meant to stock up the ATM’s at Circus Circus, but Tallchief drove away with it instead.
Solis and Tallchief used fake documents and relocated to Amsterdam. When Tallchief fell pregnant, she left Solis. She brought up her son in both the Netherlands and the UK, until deciding to go back home. 11 years after the robbery, she turned herself in and received 5 years in federal prison. Solis was never found.
Bellagio
Bellagio is a star in the map of Vegas casinos, and so it deserved an equally iconic robbery. Jose Vigoa, Luis Suarez and Oscar Sanchez, experienced casino robbers, stole $160,000 from the cashier at Bellagio. Vigoa, who was already wanted, didn’t even bother wearing a mask. A high-speed car chase ensued and Vigoa eventually received four life sentences.
In 2010, the Bellagio was robbed again by a man just as smart as Vigoa. Anthony Michael Carleo, son of a Vegas judge, produced a gun and went home with $1.5 million. Of course, being the genius that he was, Carleo bragged about the robbery and was ultimately charged.
Treasure Island
Apparently, hubris is the downfall of most Vegas casinos robbers. It certainly was for Reginald Johnson. He robbed Treasure Island Casino in July 2000, along with his brother, by brandishing guns and taking out the cash. They did the same in October 2000, and again escaped.
Apparently, third time is the charm as when they attempted to rob the same casino in December 2000, they were finally caught. They were charged with the robbery of more than $30,000 and the attempted murder of a security guard.