I had a pretty bizarre incident at the Bellagio in December. I didn't discuss this in my trip report because I was waiting for the Bellagio's response. Apparently they have chosen to ignore me. If interested, here is my correspondence to the Bellagio (I have abbreviated some of their names to protect the "indifferent.")
Gentlemen:
I recently had an incident with the Bellagio security staff on Sunday 12/19 at approximately 3:30AM.
I was falsely accused of attempting to extract unclaimed credits from slot machines. Bellagio security ultimately determined that there was a misunderstanding after I explained to them that I was checking the pay schedules of poker machines and showed them that I had over $600 in my wallet and did not have to scrounge "unclaimed credits."
Unfortunately, during this process, my license was confiscated, my license was called in an investigated by 3 security guards, I was never apprised of what was going on, I was informed that I was going to be trespassed, I was taken to a back room and I was asked to show my wallet. I was still escorted out of the casino even though it was determined that this incident was a misunderstanding and the fact that I was 1000% cooperative with the security guards, did not use any profane language or exhibit any aggressive behavior. It should be noted that these decisions were made by Ms. BC (Security Supervisor).
The next day this matter was discussed at length with Ms. C and Mr. DG. Ms C was quite arrogant (instead of apologetic) and could not understand that I was not grateful for her not trespassing me. In contrast, Mr. DG (Security Manager) was very gracious, very apologetic and could not understand why some of these actions occured. However, given the harassment, the potential illegal investigation of my license, my improper detainment and the embarassingly poor judgement of escorting me out of the casino for no reason, Mr. G's gracious apology does not put an end to this situation for me.
I sincerely hope that you question Mr. G over these events and perhaps look at the security film taken of me in the private room. I have also attached a document which provides a very comprehensive discussion of this incident. Even though I am not a "high roller," I hope that the Bellagio takes action to welcome me back to their casino. I look forward to discussing this incident further and can be reached at XXXXXX
Attachment:
I arrived at the Bellagio at approximately 3:30AM, Sunday Morning, December 19th. My intention was to play video poker, order a drink and go over to the Caramel lounge if it was still open. I typically play Bonus Poker. Some video poker machines have better “pay tables” for the same game than others within the same casino. Therefore, I began walking over to some different video poker machines to examine the pay tables. To check a pay table, you have to hit one or two buttons on a machine. I was also looking for an area which had a cocktail waitress since the casino was rather deserted.
After looking at a half a dozen or so machines over a 5-10 minute time frame I decided that the pay tables were not acceptable and there was no cocktail service. Therefore, I decided to walk into the Caramel lounge to get a drink. As I got near the entrance of the club, I was stopped by a security guard who asked me for my ID. I was amused by this since I am turning 50 next year. I quickly handed over my drivers license to this individual. Instead of him quickly handing it back to me, he walked away from the club with my license and met up with 2 other security guards. I later determined that one of the security guards was Ms. BC (security supervisor). They were all scrutinizing my license and appeared to be calling in the information to someone. I asked what was going on and was firmly told to stand back. This process appeared to go on for about 10 minutes and no information was provided to me as to what was going on. I became very concerned that I was being mistaken for someone else. I was also very worried about not having my license since I had a return flight scheduled on 12/20. I asked the guards if they thought the license belonged to me. One of the male guards said, “well it looks like you.”
Ms. C finally told me that I was going to be “trespassed” from the casino for suspicious behavior. Obviously, I was very confused. They told me that I would have to follow them to a room, and I had no choice but to comply since they still held my license. As the three of us entered the room I asked Ms. C what was suspicious about my behavior. She said that I was hovering around the machines. I pulled out my wallet so I would be sure to retrieve my license. They then ordered me to put my wallet on the table. At this point I realized what the potential problem might be. As I placed my wallet on the table, I reached in to the bill fold and pulled out around $600 and asked them if I needed to be checking machines for unclaimed credits. Apparently this must have been the issue as Ms. C muttered that there appears to be a misunderstanding. However, to my shock, instead of apologizing Ms. C indicated that I would still be escorted out of the casino but I could return the next day. A security guard escorted me out of the casino.
When I woke up on Sunday, I went over the events of this incident and became angry. I was obviously falsely harassed, the information on my license may have been illegally investigated, I was improperly detained in a room, and forced to leave the casino when I had done nothing wrong. I returned to the Bellagio that afternoon and requested to speak with the manager of Security. I spoke with Mr. JM and explained my story. He seemed surprised over some of the events and recommended that I come back after 10PM to talk with the manager of the employees in question.
I returned after 10PM and requested to speak with a manager. Ms. C came out, quickly recognized me and I advised her that I would be filing various complaints over the previous night’s actions. She again was not apologetic (and appeared to be rather arrogant over the incident). She made it seem like she did me a favor by not trespassing me. She also indicated that she had to make me leave the casino because she had already declared her intention to trespass me. After I began to walk away she asked if I would like to speak to her boss Mr. DG. I said that I would, and Mr. G came out to meet me. Mr. G continually tried to explain to me that security is on the lookout for individuals who search the gaming machines for unclaimed credits. I explained to Mr. G that I was well aware of this problem since I have been coming to Las Vegas for over 25 years and had frequently witnessed this behavior at the downtown casinos. I then explained my story to Mr. G and my specific concerns. Mr. G was very gracious and apologetic over the incident. He could not understand why I was still escorted from the casino after it was determined that there was a misunderstanding. He was also confused as to why I was not apprised of the situation which was occurring and could understand my anger over the matter. I informed Mr. G that I would be issuing a complaint(s) to the upper management of the Bellagio and perhaps other avenues and thanked him for patiently listening to my story.
Gentlemen:
I recently had an incident with the Bellagio security staff on Sunday 12/19 at approximately 3:30AM.
I was falsely accused of attempting to extract unclaimed credits from slot machines. Bellagio security ultimately determined that there was a misunderstanding after I explained to them that I was checking the pay schedules of poker machines and showed them that I had over $600 in my wallet and did not have to scrounge "unclaimed credits."
Unfortunately, during this process, my license was confiscated, my license was called in an investigated by 3 security guards, I was never apprised of what was going on, I was informed that I was going to be trespassed, I was taken to a back room and I was asked to show my wallet. I was still escorted out of the casino even though it was determined that this incident was a misunderstanding and the fact that I was 1000% cooperative with the security guards, did not use any profane language or exhibit any aggressive behavior. It should be noted that these decisions were made by Ms. BC (Security Supervisor).
The next day this matter was discussed at length with Ms. C and Mr. DG. Ms C was quite arrogant (instead of apologetic) and could not understand that I was not grateful for her not trespassing me. In contrast, Mr. DG (Security Manager) was very gracious, very apologetic and could not understand why some of these actions occured. However, given the harassment, the potential illegal investigation of my license, my improper detainment and the embarassingly poor judgement of escorting me out of the casino for no reason, Mr. G's gracious apology does not put an end to this situation for me.
I sincerely hope that you question Mr. G over these events and perhaps look at the security film taken of me in the private room. I have also attached a document which provides a very comprehensive discussion of this incident. Even though I am not a "high roller," I hope that the Bellagio takes action to welcome me back to their casino. I look forward to discussing this incident further and can be reached at XXXXXX
Attachment:
I arrived at the Bellagio at approximately 3:30AM, Sunday Morning, December 19th. My intention was to play video poker, order a drink and go over to the Caramel lounge if it was still open. I typically play Bonus Poker. Some video poker machines have better “pay tables” for the same game than others within the same casino. Therefore, I began walking over to some different video poker machines to examine the pay tables. To check a pay table, you have to hit one or two buttons on a machine. I was also looking for an area which had a cocktail waitress since the casino was rather deserted.
After looking at a half a dozen or so machines over a 5-10 minute time frame I decided that the pay tables were not acceptable and there was no cocktail service. Therefore, I decided to walk into the Caramel lounge to get a drink. As I got near the entrance of the club, I was stopped by a security guard who asked me for my ID. I was amused by this since I am turning 50 next year. I quickly handed over my drivers license to this individual. Instead of him quickly handing it back to me, he walked away from the club with my license and met up with 2 other security guards. I later determined that one of the security guards was Ms. BC (security supervisor). They were all scrutinizing my license and appeared to be calling in the information to someone. I asked what was going on and was firmly told to stand back. This process appeared to go on for about 10 minutes and no information was provided to me as to what was going on. I became very concerned that I was being mistaken for someone else. I was also very worried about not having my license since I had a return flight scheduled on 12/20. I asked the guards if they thought the license belonged to me. One of the male guards said, “well it looks like you.”
Ms. C finally told me that I was going to be “trespassed” from the casino for suspicious behavior. Obviously, I was very confused. They told me that I would have to follow them to a room, and I had no choice but to comply since they still held my license. As the three of us entered the room I asked Ms. C what was suspicious about my behavior. She said that I was hovering around the machines. I pulled out my wallet so I would be sure to retrieve my license. They then ordered me to put my wallet on the table. At this point I realized what the potential problem might be. As I placed my wallet on the table, I reached in to the bill fold and pulled out around $600 and asked them if I needed to be checking machines for unclaimed credits. Apparently this must have been the issue as Ms. C muttered that there appears to be a misunderstanding. However, to my shock, instead of apologizing Ms. C indicated that I would still be escorted out of the casino but I could return the next day. A security guard escorted me out of the casino.
When I woke up on Sunday, I went over the events of this incident and became angry. I was obviously falsely harassed, the information on my license may have been illegally investigated, I was improperly detained in a room, and forced to leave the casino when I had done nothing wrong. I returned to the Bellagio that afternoon and requested to speak with the manager of Security. I spoke with Mr. JM and explained my story. He seemed surprised over some of the events and recommended that I come back after 10PM to talk with the manager of the employees in question.
I returned after 10PM and requested to speak with a manager. Ms. C came out, quickly recognized me and I advised her that I would be filing various complaints over the previous night’s actions. She again was not apologetic (and appeared to be rather arrogant over the incident). She made it seem like she did me a favor by not trespassing me. She also indicated that she had to make me leave the casino because she had already declared her intention to trespass me. After I began to walk away she asked if I would like to speak to her boss Mr. DG. I said that I would, and Mr. G came out to meet me. Mr. G continually tried to explain to me that security is on the lookout for individuals who search the gaming machines for unclaimed credits. I explained to Mr. G that I was well aware of this problem since I have been coming to Las Vegas for over 25 years and had frequently witnessed this behavior at the downtown casinos. I then explained my story to Mr. G and my specific concerns. Mr. G was very gracious and apologetic over the incident. He could not understand why I was still escorted from the casino after it was determined that there was a misunderstanding. He was also confused as to why I was not apprised of the situation which was occurring and could understand my anger over the matter. I informed Mr. G that I would be issuing a complaint(s) to the upper management of the Bellagio and perhaps other avenues and thanked him for patiently listening to my story.
