LAS VEGAS (AP) — A trial for a Las Vegas police officer accused of stealing practically $165,000 in a sequence of on line casino heists is about to start Monday with prosecutors portray him as a playing addict who grew more and more determined beneath a crush of debt.
Prosecutors declare Caleb Rogers, 35, carried out three robberies over a span of 4 months whereas armed with a weapon issued by the police division.
Rogers’ legal professional, Richard Pocker, mentioned the federal government’s proof allegedly tying Rogers to 2 of the robberies is weak. He accused the FBI and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Division detectives of pressuring two folks, together with Rogers’ brother, into figuring out him because the suspect within the robberies to shut out the circumstances.
Rogers made off with greater than $85,000 within the first two robberies between November 2021 and January 2022 at casinos off the Las Vegas Strip whereas his police colleagues spent months making an attempt to catch the thief, investigators and prosecutors mentioned.
Rogers practically bagged an extra $79,000 in a 3rd theft on the Rio All-Suite Lodge & On line casino in February 2022, however safety guards detained him outdoors following a quick battle, authorities mentioned.
The robber’s method was primarily the identical in all three crimes, authorities mentioned. He wore a face masks, darkish clothes and black latex gloves. After cashiers handed over the cash, he positioned the money inside a bag beneath his jacket. Then the suspect with the “distinctive gait” ran again to his car, limping “due to an issue together with his leg,” in accordance with a felony criticism.
Mehmet Erdem, a professor on the College of Nevada, Las Vegas, whose experience consists of resort and on line casino operations, mentioned on line casino heists are arduous to efficiently pull off.
“The probabilities you get caught and are recognized may be very excessive,” he mentioned, due to a mixture of sturdy on line casino safety groups with uniformed guards and plainclothes officers and developments in safety expertise together with facial recognition software program and high-definition cameras.
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Rogers was a seven-year police veteran employed by the Las Vegas metro police as an active-duty patrol officer on the time of the robberies. He stays employed however is on unpaid depart “with out police powers” pending the end result of the felony case, a division spokesperson mentioned.
These testifying will embrace on line casino cashiers, safety guards and Josiah Rogers, who recognized his brother on video captured by on line casino safety cameras through the first two robberies, prosecutors mentioned final week, noting that Josiah Rogers will probably be granted immunity from authorized motion.
Caleb Rogers, who was denied bail and has been in custody on 4 fees since his arrest, used his brother’s automotive in one of many robberies and instructed him to do away with it shortly thereafter, in accordance with court docket paperwork.
Within the third alleged theft, Rogers parked an unregistered minivan outdoors the on line casino and entered simply earlier than 7 a.m., whereas workers on the on line casino’s sportsbook ready to open. He wore physique armor beneath his clothes and was armed with a department-issued revolver with a yellow sticker overlaying its serial quantity, in accordance with a felony criticism.
He climbed over-the-counter, shoved certainly one of two cashiers who was loading money into registers from a plastic bag containing $119,000 and yelled that he had a gun. As he shoveled cash right into a bag hidden inside his jacket, free payments floated onto the on line casino ground, in accordance with the criticism.
A gaggle of safety guards caught as much as the suspect simply after he made it previous the on line casino’s exit. He drew his weapon and requested the guards in the event that they have been “keen to be shot over this” earlier than certainly one of them grabbed the gun, the criticism mentioned.
When cops arrived, Rogers allegedly introduced his division personnel quantity, which authorities mentioned is “a approach cops generally determine themselves to 1 one other.”
A detective later requested Rogers if something may have been completed to stop the robberies, the criticism mentioned.
“Nothing,” Rogers mentioned.