We know Vegas is full of scams, but a refund scam?! That’s not one you normally see in a casino.
In a shocking turn of events earlier this month, a manager at an Aria Resort hotel in Las Vegas, part of MGM Group, was arrested for embezzling an astonishing $770,000. The scheme involved a web of deceitful refunds funneled into the manager’s personal debit card.
What makes this case stand out is that it involves the hospitality sector, rather than the gaming floor. The manager, responsible for hotel operations, orchestrated a clever plan. He authorized refunds to actual guests for their stays but slyly diverted the money into his personal checking account.
The first signs of trouble emerged when the manager started splurging on extravagant purchases, catching the attention of his colleagues. Curiosity got the better of one co-worker, who decided to investigate the manager’s work transactions. To their astonishment, they discovered that the manager had issued a staggering 209 fraudulent refunds to a single Chase debit card, redirecting the funds into his account. This fraudulent activity began with two refunds in July 2022 and escalated to 23 in March and a whopping 37 in July of the current year.
The manager didn’t stop at just one account. He shuffled the gains between various Chase accounts, a tactic often used by criminals to obscure the origins of illicit funds. With this scheme, he funded a luxurious lifestyle that included shopping sprees at high-end stores like Louis Vuitton and Versace, extravagant dinners, spa visits, and even private jet flights.
The investigation was set in motion when the vigilant co-worker alerted Aria’s senior management about their findings. Amidst the ongoing investigation by MGM Resorts, the manager resigned from his position and voluntarily surrendered to the police on September 1.
Despite the substantial amount of money involved, the manager’s strategy was to issue refunds in small, inconspicuous amounts, averaging around $3,700 per refund. Initially, this tactic managed to evade detection. However, the repeated use of the same debit card for all transactions, coupled with the limitations of the detection systems in place, raised serious questions about the effectiveness of the hotel’s security measures. This operation could have been conducted far more discreetly, potentially avoiding additional money laundering charges.
The employment status of the manager remains somewhat unclear, as reports suggest he both resigned and was terminated. If only refund fraud measures were in place, right? We don’t yet have a solution for getting screwed over in the casino, but instant refunds would’ve been helpful here.
Yours Truly,
The Instant Refund Expert™
The Refunds Blog 