- The daring duo was arrested late last month in the French region of Val-d’Oise
Two gamblers have robbed a French casino of hundreds of thousands of euros thanks to the latest technology that records cards as they are dealt, police claim.
The reckless duo were arrested late last month in the French region of Val-d’Oise, just north of Paris. The duo are reportedly part of a criminal gang that has made huge profits in casinos across Europe thanks to their stealthy and highly technical approach.
In scenes reminiscent of a glossy Hollywood blockbuster, the suspects – a 37-year-old Lithuanian and a 63-year-old Ukrainian – are said to have used two tiny cameras to capture the moment the dealer pulled the cards from the deck.
With one lens hidden in the body of a smartphone and the other stuck under a shirt, players could take pictures of each card from below.
The footage was sent live to an accomplice outside the casino, who quickly checked the cards and passed instructions to the men at the table through a nearly invisible earpiece.
This elaborate scheme allowed them to take over the French casino Enghien-les-Bains overnight for a whopping €200,000. Detectives believe they have pulled similar tricks on other establishments on the continent.
The daring duo, who were arrested late last month in the French region of Val-d’Oise, just north of Paris, are believed to be part of a criminal gang that has made huge profits in casinos across Europe.
The Eastern European men were arrested on the night of July 28 while relaxing at the Enghien-les-Bains resort, a decadent spa and entertainment resort that also includes a casino.
Police claimed they received a tip about their activities in June and spent weeks monitoring the players, who alternated between poker and blackjack tables, before eventually making an arrest.
Stéphane Piallat, head of France’s Central Service for Racing and Games (SCCJ), told French media that the method used by the crew was “unknown in France and barely documented in Europe”.
“They are seasoned gamblers with carefully studied methods,” Piallat said.
“They are not criminals involved in drugs or pimping. They clearly specialise in this type of crime,” he said, adding that the miniature earpieces the pair used to receive instructions could only be removed with a magnet, underlining the sophistication of their operation.
“It looks like they’ve gone from country to country, visiting one casino after another and then moving on. It’s what every gambler dreams of, winning big every time.”
With one lens hidden on the body of a smartphone and the other stuck under a shirt, players could take pictures of each card from below as it was dealt.
Neither of the arrestees had a criminal record, but a search of the individuals and their hotel rooms turned up fake IDs and multiple casino cards, suggesting to investigators that they had likely refined their technique at several other casinos before they were caught.
Now that the duo are in custody and charged with ‘organised gang fraud’, detectives hope they can track down other gang members using the same techniques elsewhere.
“Now that we understand how they operated, we can warn casinos so they can take measures to prevent this type of cheating,” Piallat concluded.
Although the two gamblers were arrested, police were unable to identify their accomplice, who remains at large.