- Recent Robberies In Las Vegas
- Has Anyone Robbed A Vegas Casino
- Las Vegas Casino Robberies History
- Las Vegas Casino Robberies 2017
Las Vegas, Sin City, The City of Lights, has seen it fair share of crimes in the past century. From the legend of Native American killer Queho to the killing of mob henchman, here are the most famous Las Vegas crimes
Circus Circus (1993) Circus Circus is a casino-hotel, situated in the Las Vegas boulevard in Las. Bill’s Stardust Robbery In-House Job $500K. In 1992, William Brennan, a cashier who worked for.
The Legend of Queho
Queho was a notorious Native American Las Vegas outlaw who terrorized the region in the early 1900s. Queho has been implicated in at least six murders, beginning with the slaying of his half-brother. After the murder of the wife of an El Dorado Canyon miner, Las Vegas authorities were determined to bring in Queho, dead or alive. After years of eluding capture, Queho’s remains were discovered in a cave. Today, Queho and his crimes are Las Vegas legends.
Murder of Martin Shumate
In December 1967, the body of Las Vegas cab driver Marvin Shumate was discovered on a mountain overlooking the city. Shumate had been shot in the chest and head. Although the murder has never been solved, it is widely believed that Benny Binion, owner of the Horseshoe Casino, ordered the hit after Shumate plotted to kidnap Binion’s son and hold him for ransom.
Death of Sonny Liston
Sonny Liston was a legendary professional boxer who was found dead in his Las Vegas area home on January 5, 1971. Liston’s body was discovered by his wife who was returning home from a two-week trip. Although the coroner said that there was not a lethal amount of heroin discovered in Liston’s system during autopsy, authorities attributed his death to an accidental drug overdose. Despite the official explanation for his death, many believe that Liston was murdered by the mob. Liston’s mysterious death is still fresh in the consciousness of Las Vegas, and as recently as 2013 the son of a deceased mafia hitman published a book claiming that his father confessed to murdering Liston via forced drug overdose.
Murder of retired FBI agent Bill Coulthard
In July 1972 a massive car bomb detonated inside of a downtown Las Vegas parking garage, killing the former head of the FBI’s Las Vegas office, Bill Coulthard. At the time of his death, Coulthard was a prominent local attorney and businessman who owned a stake in the land that the Horseshoe Casino was built on. Local authorities were immediately joined by the FBI and the ATF in an attempt to solve the high-profile murder. Despite a $75,000 reward for information and many wild goose chases, the case remains open to this day. The FBI believed that casino magnate Benny Binion ordered the hit on Coulthard when Coulthard refused to renew Binion’s lease of the Horseshoe Casino.
Robbery and Execution of Al Bramlet
In the 1970s, Al Bramlet was the head of one of the country’s most powerful unions; Las Vegas’ Local 226. Bramlet was notorious for his willingness to use violence to coerce cooperation. In 1977, Bramlet ordered bombs be placed in front of two nonunion restaurants. When the bombs failed to detonate and police discovered them, Bramlet refused to pay the men he hired to carry out the bombing. The bombers, father and son Thomas and Gramby Hanley, vowed revenge. A month later, the Hanley’s forced Bramlet into a van at gun point. They demanded payment for the botched bombing job, and after Bramlet arranged a $10,000 loan to pay his kidnappers, they drove him to a remote area of the Las Vegas desert and executed him. The father and son duo are serving life in prison for the murder.
Arson Fire at Las Vegas Hilton
In 1981, Philip Cline, a troubled 23-year-old busboy at the Hilton hotel, started a fire in the elevator lobby. The fire spread fast, trapping guests in their rooms. Eight people died, and over 200 were injured. Authorities initially believed that Cline attempted to put out the fire, but he gave himself up when he mentioned “grabbing a trashcan and filling it with fire.”After being convicted of eight counts of murder, Cline granted a jailhouse interview and confessed to the arson. He said that high on PCP, he used his lighter to set fire to some curtains.
Theft of $500,000 in cash and chips by William John Brennan
In September 1992, then 34-year-old William John Brennan walked out of the Stardust with $500,000 in cash and chips. Brennan was a sports book cashier at the casino. After the theft, Brennan disappeared and has not been heard from since. An arrest warrant charging him with 12 counts of felony theft has been issued for Brennan, however he remains at large to this day.
Robbery of $2.95 million from Circus Circus casino.
In 1993, Heather Tallchief drove away from the Circus Circus Casino in an armored truck with over $2.95 million inside. Tallchief and her accomplice, Roberto Solis, disappeared with the millions and were not heard from for over a decade. In 2005,Tallchief turned herself in to Las Vegas authorities. In 2006, a federal judge sentenced Tallchief to five years and three months in prison for her role in the heist. Roberto Solis has never been found and none of the stolen money has ever been recovered.
Kidnapping of Casino Mogul Steve Wynn’s Daughter
In 1993, the then 26-year-old daughter of casino mogul Steve Wynn was kidnapped and held for ransom. Two armed men abducted Wynn’s daughter from her home and demanded $2.5 million for her return. The kidnapper’s settled for $1.45 million when Wynn told them that was all he could get from the vault that night. He put the money in a plastic bag and left it in a car a couple miles off the Strip. After picking up the ransom, the kidnappers called Wynn and told him he would find his daughter in a parked car at a local airport. The young woman was shaken and tied up, but safe. The perpetrators were arrested days later when one of them attempted to buy a $200,000 car in cash, arousing the suspicions of law enforcement.
Murder of Tupac Shakur
On September 7, 1996, 25-year-old hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur suffered fatal gunshot wounds in a Las Vegas drive-by shooting. Tupac was the passenger in a car driven by Death Row Records founder, Suge Knight, when, while stopped at a red light at the intersection of E. Flamingo Rd. and Koval Lane, a white four-door late-model Cadillac approached and opened fire. Tupac was hit four times, once in the arm, once in the thigh, and twice in the chest. He survived his initial injuries and was rushed to the hospital, but he died there six days later of respiratory failure leading to cardiac arrest. The murder of Tupac Shakur devastated fans and the hip-hop community, and remains officially unsolved to this day.
Shooting of Herbert Blitzstein
In January 1997, Las Vegas mob legend Herbert “Fat Herbie” Blitzstein was shot execution style in his home. Seven mob members from Buffalo and Las Vegas were arrested in connection with the murder plot. Rival gang members wanted him out of the way so that they could take over his numerous profitable street rackets, including prostitution, insurance fraud, and loansharking. Fat Herbie was a fixture in the Las Vegas underworld and was a member of a burglary ring known as The Hole in the Wall Gang. The movie Casino memorialized the popular gangster with the fictional character Bernie Blue, who was created in his likeness.
Murder of Christine Smith
In 1998, 65-year-old Nevada resident Christine Smith disappeared. Three years later, her body was found in a garbage can inside of a storage unit owned by her daughter. The victim’s daughter, Brookey Lee West, allegedly killed Smith so that she could steal her monthly Social Security checks. Although she has only been convicted of one murder, West is believed to be a serial killer responsible for the deaths of at least three people. In 2012, West made Las Vegas headlines again when she tried to escape from prison.
Murder of Ted Binion
In 1998, Ted Binion was found dead on the floor of his Las Vegas home. Binion was a wealthy gambling executive and his father, Benny Binion, was a Las Vegas legend and casino magnate. A cocktail of prescription and illegal drugs was found in Binion’s system, and his death was initially thought to be a suicide. However, Las Vegas detectives believed that the scene of his death had been staged, and six months later, reclassified the manner it as homicide. In June 1999, Binion’s girlfriend and her lover were arrested for his murder. The pair was convicted, but their murder convictions were overturned in 2003. In their 2004 retrial, they were each acquitted of murder and convicted of lesser charges in connection with Binion’s death, including robbery and grand larceny. Both have since been released from prison.
Bellagio Cashier Cage Robbery
In 2000, two men dressed in body armor jumped over the cashier cage counter at the Bellagio. A third man served as a lookout. The men stole $160,000 in cash and chips and fled the floor. Authorities arrested three men in connection with the robbery; Oscar Sanchez Cisneros, Jose Manuel Vigoa, and Luis Suarez. Vigoa turned out to be responsible for multiple casino robberies and the murder of two armored truck drivers and was sentenced to life without parole. Suarez was sentenced to 15 years for his role. Cisneros hung himself in his jail cell four months after the robbery. In response to the theft, MGM Resorts installed bars around each of its Las Vegas Strip cashier cages.
Murder of Melissa James
In December 2005, a surprised motorist stumbled upon a torched Jaguar in the middle of the Las Vegas desert. In the trunk was the body of 28-year-old Melissa James, who had moved to Las Vegas just four months earlier at the insistence of her friend, Craig Titus. Titus, and his wife Kelly Ryan, were stars in the fitness industry, holding multiple bodybuilding titles between them. James had moved to Las Vegas to become the couples live in personal assistant, and less than six months later, she was dead. An autopsy revealed Melissa had been tased, strangled, and injected with a lethal dose of morphine. Although the couple initially denied involvement in James’s death, mounting evidence against them led to their arrest. In 2008, Craig Titus and Kelly Ryan pled guilty to the second-degree murder of Melissa James. Today, they are both serving time in Nevada prisons for their crimes.
Unsolved Attacks on Las Vegas Homeless
In December 2005, a panhandler was fatally shot in the street while he begged for change. This crime is still unsolved, and marked the first in a series of deadly attacks against the Las Vegas homeless population. Since 2005, five other homeless people have been randomly shot. Thankfully, two of the victims survived their injuries. All of the victims were shot with small caliber weapons, for no apparent reason, on or near bus benches. In 2011, after the last two victims were shot, Las Vegas authorities formed a task force to investigate the similarities of the crimes, and hopefully identify a suspect. The series of murders remains unsolved.
Luxor Parking Garage Pipe Bombing
On May 7, 2007, a pipe bomb detonated on the roof of the Las Vegas Luxor’s parking garage. The blast killed 24-year-old Willebaldo Dorantes Antonio. The bomb sat on top of the victim’s car disguised by a Styrofoam coffee cup, and was detonated by a motion sensor trigger. Suspect Porfirio Duarte-Herrera allegedly built the bomb for his friend, Rueda-Denvers, who was jealous that the victim was dating a former girlfriend of his. The act of violence terrified the community and had the potential to kill many more innocent bystanders. Both suspects have been sentenced to life without parole.
Robbery of $1.5 million in Chips
In December 2010, a man drove his motorcycle up to the Bellagio Hotel and Casino and walked inside still wearing his motorcycle helmet. He walked up to a craps table and robbed it at gunpoint, making off with $1.5 million in chips. Although the so-called Biker Bandit was able to escape with the chips, problems arose when he attempted to cash them. The thief, operating under the handle Biker Bandit, went online to attempt to arrange the sale of some of the stolen $25,000 chips. Undercover police officers arranged a meeting at the Bellagio to buy the chips and arrested 29-year-old Anthony Carleo when he showed up to sell them. Carleo is serving 3 to 11 years in prison for the heist.
Curcio speaking to college football players in August 2014 | |
| Born | September 1, 1980 (age 40) |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Speaker, author |
| Children | 2 |
Anthony J. Curcio (born September 1, 1980) is an American author, public speaker, and convicted robber.[1] In 2008, Curcio was responsible for one of the most elaborately planned armored car heists in U.S. history.[2] He was eventually arrested and sentenced to six years in federal prison. Upon his release from prison he has devoted his life to working with youth in the field of drug abuse and crime prevention, speaking to students and athletes across the U.S.[3] He has been featured in GQ, Esquire, 20/20, Fox News, NPR and NBC among others.
Early life[edit]
Curcio was born and raised in Monroe, Washington. As a teenager, he was popular and talented and voted captain of both football and basketball teams at Monroe High School. Curcio broke many records in football and received several honors and awards for his play in both sports.[4][5]
Curcio would later go on to play football at his father's alma mater, the University of Idaho, which had been his childhood dream.[6] While returning a punt in practice, Curcio tore his anterior cruciate ligament, ending his promising college football career and introducing him to the powerful pain killer Vicodin. Curcio quickly became addicted to the prescription pills.[7]Soon after, he began experiencing withdrawals and even injured himself intentionally by kicking an oak coffee table repeatedly in order to obtain more pills. With family pressure, Curcio agreed to enter a drug/alcohol treatment facility.[8]
After completing a 21-day in-patient program, Curcio, now sober, started his first business, called 'Tony’s Gaming', which bought and sold casino tables and other gaming merchandise. Curcio expanded his business by leasing a commercial space and adjacent storage. Within a few months of being open to the public, Tony's Gaming was unexpectedly shut down. The Washington State Gambling Commission and local police raided Tony's Gaming and confiscated the inventory, stating that Curcio did not possess the proper permits.[8]
Under increasing financial pressure, Curcio relapsed and began forging prescriptions on his computer. He later became aware that the police raid was due to influence from a real estate broker who had financial interest in a local casino. Curcio attempted to retain legal representation in the case but was denied services by local attorneys already debriefed by the real estate broker/casino owner.[8]
Curcio and several of his associates retaliated against the casino owner by breaking into his businesses and removing computers, files and documents from the offices he owned.[8]
Curcio continued to maintain an outward appearance that resembled a successful business owner and family man. He graduated from college, married his high school sweetheart, had two daughters and would later own a real estate investment company based in Seattle, Washington.[9]
However, he was living two different lives. As his addiction progressed, so did his involvement in illegal activities. By his mid 20s, Curcio had already organized several high-dollar thefts, scams, and loan-sharking schemes, and was also behind a sports memorabilia counterfeiting ring.[10]Despite having completed four drug and alcohol treatment programs, ABC News stated that Curcio was spending nearly $15,000 a month on his increasing drug habit which now also included cocaine and benzodiazepines.[10]
Curcio's real estate investment business took a heavy downturn when the economy collapsed in 2008, leaving him with several homes on the verge of foreclosure and vehicles near repossession among other outstanding personal debts.[9]
Recent Robberies In Las Vegas
With assets and bank accounts depleting, Curcio hatched the idea to rob a Brink's armored car.
Brink's robbery[edit]
For three months, Curcio observed a Brink'sarmored car as it made deliveries to the Bank of America branch in Monroe, Washington. He took notes of the schedule, diagrammed locations of the bank's cameras, and noted the armored car's blind spots. He also estimated how much money was being transferred to the bank and how much was being removed via ATMs.[10]
He considered police protocol in responding to robberies and the location of the bank and decided on using a local creek to escape.
After weeks of hand-dredging the creek in Woods Creek and a failed practice attempt at using a jet ski for the getaway, he changed his approach and created a cable pulley system to quickly pull himself, and large bags of cash, upstream using a connected canvas-wrapped inner tube.[11]
Curcio's planning culminated with an advertisement he placed on Craigslist a few days before the robbery. The online ad sought 15 to 20 workers for a fictitious city cleanup project, promising $28.50 an hour. The laborers were told to wear jeans, a blue shirt, work shoes, and a yellow safety vest. The ad also told the applicants they needed to bring safety goggles and a painter's mask. The ad directed them to meet in the Bank of America parking lot at the exact time Curcio planned to rob the armored car.
On September 30, 2008, Curcio, dressed identically to his decoy applicants, pretended to work the grounds near the bank. Wearing a blue shirt, jeans, yellow safety vest, work boots, and painter's mask, he pepper-sprayed the Brink's armored car guard who was pushing a dolly loaded with money into the bank. The pepper spray forced the guard to reach for his eyes and release the cart that held the money. Curcio grabbed two bags of money, containing more than $400,000, and ran toward the creek. Meanwhile, police arrived to find the bank's parking lot filled with men matching the robber's description.
At the water's edge, Curcio threw the money into the inner tube and pulled himself up the creek with the cables he had previously strung. He traveled about 200 yards upstream and exited the creek behind several businesses on the opposite side of the highway from the bank. Curcio removed his wig and worker's clothing that had been attached by Velcro, revealing different attire underneath. He climbed into the trunk of a getaway vehicle driven by an associate and left.[12]
Curcio's careful planning and unusual getaway gained national attention. The timing of the robbery came days after announcements of the government's bank bailout package that included Bank of America. The unique robbery techniques gained notoriety for the mysterious robber who was referred to as the 'Craigslist Robber' and 'D.B. Tuber', after the 1970s hijacker D. B. Cooper.
Arrest[edit]
Curcio's undoing would come a month later when a homeless man reported to police that several weeks before the robbery he had seen a man drive up to the Bank of America parking lot and retrieve a disguise from behind a trash bin. The man found it suspicious enough to write down the license plate number of the car which he later provided to police. The car was registered to Curcio.[13] What the man had seen was one of Curcio's practice runs to ensure proper timing of the heist.
After Curcio returned from a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada, the FBI began their surveillance of him as a suspect in the robbery. Local authorities retrieved his DNA from a drink bottle disposed of by Curcio at a gas station and compared it to the DNA from the face mask and wig discarded a short distance from the scene of the robbery. The DNA samples matched and Curcio was arrested in Lake Stevens, Washington getting out of a luxury SUV with $17,000 in cash.[10]
With only circumstantial evidence connecting Curcio to the crime, he initially bonded out, but a month later (January 2009), his bond was revoked and he was returned to custody after being suspected of witness tampering.[4]
Later details would reveal that $220,000 was recovered after an associate of Curcio's came forward to make a deal with the FBI and local police. Curcio refused to cooperate with authorities and no other charges were ever filed against any of Curcio's unnamed co-conspirators.[1][8]
All of the money except for what Curcio paid the getaway driver and other accomplices was eventually recovered.[1]
Prison[edit]
Curcio was sentenced to 72 months in federal prison and served his time in FCI Big Spring, FCI La Tuna and Coleman Correctional Complex.[14]
While being housed in FCI La Tuna, Curcio became close with fellow inmate George Jung. Jung encouraged Curcio to write a book, and put him in touch with author/biographer Dane Batty. The two soon began correspondence.[8]
During this time, Curcio was with two inmates who had previously assaulted another inmate. While prison authorities knew Curcio was not involved in the attack, authorities still held him ‘under investigation’ until the case had been resolved. Curcio spent seven months in solitary confinement for this affiliation. In solitary, he received beatings, witnessed suicides and would have cockroaches crawl all over his body at night. Upon his release, he wrote the book Heist and High,[15] promising to prevent others from making the same decisions he had made.[8][16]
Throughout the duration of his sentence, Curcio wrote and illustrated over 20 children's books, including one aimed at the children of incarcerated parents titled My Daddy’s in Jail.[17][18]
Curcio finished his incarceration at USP Coleman in Florida, where he completed a drug-treatment program and was released from custody April 2013.
Release[edit]
Has Anyone Robbed A Vegas Casino
Curcio was released April 4, 2013 and returned to the Seattle area, reuniting with his wife and two daughters. He has since been working with youth and giving presentations regarding drug abuse prevention and the importance of making positive choices. He speaks to middle schools, high schools and universities across the U.S.[14]
Curcio has been featured on several media platforms using his story to increase awareness regarding addiction.[19] His book, Heist and High[15] (Nish Publishing, 286 pages), was released June 21, 2013 and has been the recipient of several awards.[16][20]
Las Vegas Casino Robberies History
References[edit]
- ^ abcClarridge, Christine (September 18, 2014). 'Inner-tube robber now free, warning about life of drugs, crime'. The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on December 19, 2014.
- ^Doughery, Phil. 'D.B. Tuber'. HistoryLink.org. History Link.
- ^Esteban, Michelle (October 10, 2014). 'D.B. Tuber dedicates life to warn others of dangers of drugs'. KOMO 4 News.
- ^ ab'Former High School Star Athlete Sentenced to Prison for Armored Car Robbery'. justice.gov. The United States Attorney's Office. July 2009.
- ^Stangeland, Brooke (June 21, 2013). 'Out of Prison, Real-Life Thomas Crown Looks Back on Almost-Perfect Heist'. ABC news.
- ^'1999 Idaho Vandals - Sports Illustrated'. CNN/Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 2014-11-30. Retrieved 2014-11-29.
- ^Stangeland, Brooke (June 20, 2013). 'Reporter's Notebook: On the Trail of a Bank Robber'. ABC News.
- ^ abcdefgBatty, Dane; Curcio, Anthony (June 21, 2013). Heist and High. Portland, Oregon: Nish Publishing Company. ISBN098579450X. Archived from the original on December 5, 2014. Retrieved November 29, 2014.
- ^ abKushner, David. 'The All-American Bank Heist'. GQ Magazine. Archived from the original on 2014-11-30. Retrieved 2014-11-29.
- ^ abcdBenitez, Gio. 'The (Almost) Perfect Crime'. ABC 20/20.
- ^Ith, Ian (July 2009). '6-year sentence in robbery with getaway inner tube'. The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on 2014-12-19.
- ^Sigerson, Doc. 'AKA: DB Tuber'. Red Fez.
- ^Hefley, Diana (November 26, 2008). 'Feds Charge Suspect in Armored Car Heist'. The Everett Herald.
- ^ abCurcio, Anthony. 'acurcio.com'. www.acurcio.com.
- ^ ab'Heist And High - Nish Publishing'. Archived from the original on 2014-12-05. Retrieved 2014-11-29.
- ^ abManning, Craig. 'Indie Ground Breaking Book: Heist and High'. IPM.
- ^Burykill, Brett. 'The Ex-Con Who Wants to Explain Prison to Kids'. Vice Magazine.
- ^Wing, Jennifer. 'How Years Of Unforgivable Theft And Lies Became Forgivable'. Retrieved 2016-09-07.
- ^Millman, Michelle. 'How Painkillers Can Lead to Heroin Addiction'. KIRO 7 news.
- ^'2013 IndieFab Award Winners'. FOREWORD.
External links[edit]
Media related to Anthony Curcio at Wikimedia Commons