Three Arrests In High Tech Casino Scam Probe

A woman and two men suspected of operating a high-tech scam to fleece some of London's top casinos out of hundreds of thousands of pounds have been arrested.

The trio were arrested at a central London casino in the early hours of yesterday morning following a probe by Scotland Yard's specialist Clubs and Vice Gaming Unit.

Police say it is the first time arrests have been made in the UK suspected of using equipment to cheat in such a way.

Officers believe the three, working as a team, were using complex surveillance equipment to defraud the casino out of thousands of pounds in cash.

Detective Inspector Darren Warner, of the Gaming Unit, said: "The scam came to light as a result of close working and training by the Gaming Unit with casinos around identifying this type of cheat. The casino alerted police after they became suspicious when their own security checks and the individual's patterns of play suggested something potentially suspicious was occurring. A man and woman played three-card poker. They used micro-cameras and beamed the pictures to a computer monitor. This monitor was viewed by another person who then instructed the players, who were wearing hidden earpieces, whether to bet or not. The team appear to be have been operating UK wide and it is believed they have been in at least six London casinos where they may have illegally netted over £250,000."

He said the Met's Gaming Unit, working in partnership with the UK Casino Security Managers Association, instigated a pre-planned operation once the trio had been identified. Uniform officers from Chelsea Police Station then made the arrests.

DI Warner added: "The arrests are indicative of how the expertise of our unit, the only dedicated specialist unit of this type in the country, achieves good results when working so closely with casino surveillance departments."

David Livermore, of UK Casino Security Managers Association, said: "We have been working with the Gaming Unit for some time. It is very satisfying when our joint operations work so effectively."

David Mills, another member of the Association, said: "We have been tracking the increasing trend towards technical casino crime for some years now and are pleased that our internal procedures proved successful once again. This decisive action against these criminals will again enforce this view that the London Casinos are a safe, secure and crime free environment."

All three suspects have been bailed to return to a central London police station in December, pending further inquiries.