Two men are currently facing charges after they allegedly stole $352,000 from a tribal gaming property in South Dakota earlier this year. Roberto Carlos Gonzales Miranda and Roberto Orellana were recently indicted for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit theft from a gaming establishment on Indian lands, and transportation of stolen money, according to South Dakota TV station KELO.
The elaborate scheme took place in February at the Grand River Casino in Mobridge, SD. It began when a woman placed a call to the manager of the casino’s cashiers’ cage. Subsequently, a man on the line posed as a collections contractor for the United States Postal Service, claiming that the casino owed $700,000. He warned that failure to pay the amount immediately would result in additional fines or fees.
In a further twist, a third suspect pretending to be the manager’s supervisor sent a text message instructing the manager to “empty the vault and deposit the cash at a Bitcoin ATM in Aberdeen, South Dakota,” according to KELO. Acting under these false pretenses, the casino employee gathered $352,000 from the vault, entered a vehicle with the money, and drove to Aberdeen. There, he was directed to deliver the money to two individuals in a gas station parking lot. The casino is owned and operated by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.
In another incident involving casino winnings, a man was arrested in Tulsa, Oklahoma, following the armed robbery of a recent jackpot winner. The suspect, Terry Brown, was charged with armed robbery with a firearm as a convicted felon.
The episode unfolded when Brown allegedly brandished a firearm and demanded cash from the victim, who had won an undisclosed amount of money at an unnamed gaming property. Along with the cash, Brown reportedly took car keys and a phone, according to Tulsa TV station KTUL. The robbery occurred at about 6 p.m. on Friday at a residence near 44th Street and Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard. A second suspect accompanied Brown in the robbery and remains at large, police said.
The incident was partially captured on a security camera. The victim’s sister-in-law reported the event to the Tulsa Police Department (TPD), providing details of the suspects and their getaway vehicle. Shortly afterward, a TPD helicopter spotted a vehicle matching the description on North Quaker Avenue. Officers stopped the vehicle, and Terry Brown, who was inside, matched the description of the robbery suspect.
Brown was subsequently booked for the crime, and his case was handed over to local prosecutors.
