Two men charged with running a poker cheating operation at a pair of North County casinos have pleaded not guilty after prosecutors claimed they won over $30,000 using marked cards.
San Diego Men Blamed for Fixing Poker Game with Marked Cards
Vaagn Galustyan, 52, and Armin Martirosyan, 53, showed up on September 30 in San Diego County Superior Court for their arraignment on two felony counts of conspiring to commit a crime. If found guilty, both men could spend up to three years and eight months in state prison, reported The Times of San Diego.
The District Attorney’s Office reports that the two men employed a technique that gamblers have used for hundreds of years, but remains against the law and subject to prosecution today. The investigation reveals that the pair, along with an unknown partner, made small folds in the corners of high-value cards such as tens, face cards, and aces, to mark them for later identification. This tactic allowed the group to predict the dealer’s possible cards and change their bets to match.
Law enforcement claims the first event took place at Pala Casino Spa Resort. The accused entered on their own but sat down at the same Mississippi Stud Poker table. Security cameras caught the men repeatedly touching and bending their high-value cards. After they won over $19,000, the casino closed the table, making the men leave. Prosecutors say they came back about five hours later, wearing different clothes and cashed in some of their chips at different cashier windows. Investigators think this was done to avoid raising suspicion.
Teamwork with Tribal Casinos Crucial to Solve $32,000 Scam Case
The next week, people accused the group of using the same trick at Harrah’s Resort Southern California in Valley Center. They got $13,410 more there. In total, they are thought to have made $32,660 from this plan.
District Attorney Summer Stephan said that while people have been marking cards to cheat for centuries, better cameras now make it easier to catch cheaters. She also stressed how important it is for her office to work with tribal governments, which run casinos on reservation land. This teamwork was key to moving the case forward.
The two accused stay out of jail while awaiting trial. A first court hearing is set for January 15, when the prosecution will show more proof. Police still try to find the third person they think helped with the plan.Right now, Galustyan and Martirosyan say they did not do it. However, this case shows the dangers casinos face from old-school cheating tricks. Tribal casino owners claim they are getting better at spotting these tricks with new surveillance systems.