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A new podcast, “The High Roller Heist,” chronicles the misadventures of a noted asshat, Tony Carleo. All due respect to asses and hats.
Carleo robbed the Suncoast and Bellagio in 2010. He wore a motorcycle helmet, garnering him the label of “Biker Bandit,” although, we’re pretty sure Carleo gave himself that name.
In a fun twist, the casino robber is the son of George Assad, a former Las Vegas Municipal Court Judge and currently a member of the Nevada Gaming Control Board, the entity that regulates (wait for it) casinos. Which is possibly the most Las Vegas sentence we have ever written.
While “High Roller Heist” has a whiff of glorifying the acts of a drug-addled, gambling-addicted imbecile, it does a good job of providing context for Carleo’s misdeeds without sensationalizing them too much.
In the Bellagio heist, Carleo nabbed $1.5 million in chips, many of them “cranberry” chips—worth $25,000 each, but only if one can cash them in.
The “Biker Bandit” was caught while trying to sell several $25,000 chips. To an undercover police officer. Police eventually recovered $775,000 of the $1.5 million in chips.
See, casino chips aren’t money. Casino chips have no monetary value outside a casino. Roulette chips can’t even be cashed at the casino cage. We do not use the terms “bonehead” or “asshat” lightly.
Carleo’s buffoonery has been well-documented, his actions at the time being compared to an episode of “America’s Dumbest Criminals.”
One of the bigger twists in this story is after his brazen robbery of Bellagio, Carleo stayed at the Strip resort as a guest (he checked in less than 24 hours after committing the crime), taking advantage of all the perks associated with being a high roller.
It was fun while it lasted.
A judge sentenced Carleo to 6-16 years for the Suncoast robbery. He got 3-11 years for the Bellagio robbery.
Carleo is out of prison and selling solar panels in Colorado, according to the producers of the podcast. It seems Carleo has “mostly” changed his ways, and participating in the podcast was cathartic as he tries to rebuild his post-slammer life after a series of very bad decisions.
Our favorite part of this podcast is our appearance in episode two. For once, we do not recommend skipping over the rest of the podcast just to listen to our part. Props to the podcast for the excellent agonizing scream after our description of how casinos used to deal with thieves and cheaters. Now, you sort of have to listen.
Five of eight episodes of “The High Roller Heist” have been released, so catch up in time for the final installment.
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