Another reader also wrote in about this incident, having been staying at the Stardust at the time it occurred. As they related in their account, there wasn't a shootout, but it was one of the largest, best-planned, and more dramatic attempted heists in Las Vegas casino history, so thanks to both of you for reminding us.
For an account of what went down we turn to an appeal lodged with the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth District, by one of the plaintiffs. We've edited it slightly for ease of reading and to remove extraneous legalese, but what follows is an excellent blow-by-blow of this attempted double hit on the Stardust, which saw more than its fair share of scams and skims during its colorful life.
"In September 1991, Bobby Lee Hopper's father, Royal Mayne Hopper, was employed as a security guard at the Stardust Casino in Las Vegas. Hopper and Royal planned to rob the Stardust using Royal's knowledge of the Stardust's security procedures, physical layout, and movement of currency.
"In the early morning hours of September 25, 1991, Royal was escorting a coworker, who was transferring money. [Bobby Lee] Hopper entered the Stardust armed with a .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol and forced the coworker, who was unaware of Royal's complicity in the robbery, to hand over $153,000. Hopper then fled the scene in a taxi, while Royal contacted security to report the robbery.
"After the first robbery, Hopper and Royal planned to commit another heist by holding up a Loomis armored guard at the Stardust. They recruited other participants to assist them in the second robbery, including Hopper's brother, Jeffrey Hopper, and Wesley E. Carroll.
"After two aborted attempts, a second successful robbery occurred on April 6, 1992. Jeffrey diverted security's attention by falsely reporting a fight occurring at the swimming pool. Meanwhile, Hopper and Carroll entered the Stardust disguised in beards and wigs and armed with guns. They waited for the Loomis guard, and when he arrived, they lit smoke bombs to create a screen between the gambling area and the Loomis guard. Hopper and Carroll knocked the guard to the floor and took three bags of money, containing approximately $489,000 in cash and $627,000 in negotiable instruments. Carroll also grabbed the guard's gun, which Royal later buried in the desert. Hopper and Carroll then fled the Stardust in a vehicle driven by Royal. While still in the Stardust parking lot, all three men climbed over a wall into an adjacent hotel parking lot, where they got into a second vehicle. After driving to yet another hotel parking lot, they again changed vehicles.
"On April 8, 1992, following leads involving the various vehicles used during the robbery, the police arrested Royal in Las Vegas. The other participants, upon hearing of Royal's arrest, began making efforts to establish false alibis and hide evidence. Hopper and Jeffrey burned the negotiable instruments obtained and the disguises used in the robbery. The day after Royal's arrest, Hopper attempted to buy a false alibi for $20,000, and he hid robbery proceeds in a storage unit, later moving them to another unit. Jeffrey and Bobby Lee Hopper, and Wesley Carroll, were all picked five days after Royal's arrest.
"Royal Hopper was indicted for various federal crimes. His trial was scheduled for January 4, 1993. On December 16, 1992, he pled guilty to conspiracy, interference with commerce by violence, use of a deadly weapon in a crime of violence, and interstate transportation of stolen property. Finally, on December 30, 1992, he disclosed information on the robberies to the FBI. He was sentenced on March 3, 1993."
We couldn't find out how long Royal was sentenced to, although we did read that a subsequent appeal was rejected. We know that Jeff Hopper served two years in a federal prison near Dallas for his part in the crime.
Unlike the majority of attempted robberies related in the April 5 QoD, these two capers were meticulously planned and pretty seamlessly executed. The accomplices spent months driving around, observing, timing routes, and gambling in the casino to get the lay of the land -- at times winning large amounts of cash.
As is so often the case, however, it was greed and carelessness that proved to be these robbers' undoing. When the second robbery was staged, Royal Hopper was already suspected of being responsible for the previous September's theft. A witness also identified one of the getaway cars, and in that car was a soft drink can bearing a clear fingerprint that belonged to Bobby Lee Hopper. After that, the authorities closed in quickly and it was all over.
