It’s not quite on the global scale of the Ultimate Bet brouhaha, but the Tran Organization‘s conspiracy to fleece dozens of U.S., Canadian and tribal casinos is racking up an amazing head count. To date, federal prosecutors have already nailed 31 scalps to their wall, not counting three other individuals to who pled out to related charges (including one in Canada).
If you thought this was the end of the Tran Organization … surprise! The feds unsealed another set of indictments this month. Eight more individuals were hit with various counts of “conspiracy to steal money and other property from Indian tribal casinos, and conspiracy to travel in interstate and foreign commerce in aid of racketeering.”
At the core of the Tran Organization’s scam was the execution of “false shuffles,” whereby “slugs” of unshuffled cards were insinuated into blackjack and mini-baccarat decks. This required the cooperation of corrupt casino employees and, from the looks of the Department of Justice‘s announcement, the core Tran Organization members must be rolling on their casino-employed helpers.
The Tran gang managed to take no fewer than 26 casinos during the life of its scheme, which is a very black mark against the industry’s standard of game protection. The dishonor roll is as follows:
1) Beau Rivage Casino, Biloxi, Miss. 2) Casino Rama, Orillia, Ontario, Canada 3) Foxwoods Resort Casino, Ledyard, Conn. 4) Gold Strike Casino, Tunica, Miss. 5) Horseshoe Casino, Bossier City, La. 6) Horseshoe Casino & Hotel, Tunica, Miss. 7) Isle of Capri Casino, Westlake, La. 8) Majestic Star Casino, Gary, Ind. 9) Mohegan Sun Resort Casino, Uncasville, Conn. 10) Palace Station Casino, Las Vegas, Nev. 11) Resorts East Chicago Hotel & Casino, East Chicago, Ind. 12) Sycuan Casino, El Cajon, Calif. 13) Cache Creek Indian Bingo & Casino, Brooks, Calif. 14) Emerald Queen Casino, Tacoma, Wash. 15) Imperial Palace Casino, Biloxi, Miss. 16) Argosy Casino, Baton Rouge, La. 17) Trump 29 Casino, Coachella, Calif. 18) Isle of Capri Casino, Bossier City, La. 19) Agua Caliente Casino, Rancho Mirage, Calif. 20) Spa Resort Casino, Palm Springs, Calif. 21) Pechanga Resort & Casino, Temecula, Calif. 22) L'Auberge du Lac Casino, Lake Charles, La. 23) Nooksack River Casino, Deming, Wash. 24) Barona Valley Ranch Casino & Resort, Lakeside, Calif. 25) Caesars Indiana Hotel & Casino, Elizabeth, Ind. 26) Monte Carlo Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nev.
