‘Serial Cheater’ Accused of Late Betting to Win $5K on Craps at Cleveland Casino

A gambler with prior convictions for cheating at casinos now stands accused of illegally winning over $5,000 at the craps tables at an Ohio casino by placing late bets.

An indictment in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas charges 62-year-old Ellis Quinn of Memphis, Tennessee, with violating casino gaming laws to win $5,080 by cheating at craps on July 31 at the JACK Cleveland Casino. 

Quinn Has History of Cheating in Multiple States

According to the indictment, Quinn was placing additional bets on winning numbers and wagers after the dice had already been rolled. Court records say that Quinn placed illegal bets on 15 separate occasions, and was caught doing so by surveillance video. 

This isn’t the first time that Quinn has been accused of cheating on casino games. Cleveland.com reported that he is banned from casinos in both Pennsylvania and Ohio because of prior convictions for cheating. 

In 2014, Quinn pleaded guilty to cheating at both the Hollywood Casino in Columbus and the Hollywood Casino in Toledo in two separate cases at Ohio casinos. 

“If there is anyone who deserves the label of serial cheater, it is Mr. Quinn,” Lucas County Common Pleas Judge Ruth Ann Franks said while sentencing Quinn for cheating at the Toledo casino.

Judge: ‘A Professional Thief’ 

In that case, Quinn had to pay $405 back to the Hollywood Casino, and also received the maximum term of one year in prison. While Quinn said that the dealer approved his bets, Judge Franks did not accept that statement.

“It’s called sleight of hand,” Judge Franks said. “That’s why they have cameras that look down on these tables because if anything Mr. Quinn is, he’s a professional thief.”

Quinn also pleaded guilty to the cheating case in Columbus. Between the two guilty pleas, Quinn was sentenced to a total of 30 months in prison.

In April 2018, Quinn was accused of cheating at the Wind Creek Bethlehem Casino in Pennsylvania. In that case, he was sentenced to between nine and 23 months in prison, according to Cleveland.com. 

Late betting, which is known as “past posting” in the gaming industry, is a common form of cheating in which a gambler places bets after already knowing some or all of the information about a wager in progress. 

Classically, this was used in sports betting schemes before games were regularly broadcast live on television or radio. While such a scheme can be effective at a casino table game in the moment for a skilled operator, the presence of security cameras at casinos now makes it likely that late bettors will be caught by surveillance teams if there is any suspicion of cheating. 

(Image: Instagram/Jackclecasino; inset: Toledo PD)