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Brooklyn Teen Gambler In Atlantic City Costs The House Dearly
By
John Del Signore
Published Aug 5, 2009
Modified Aug 5, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published Aug 5, 2009
Modified Aug 5, 2009
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An underage gambler has cost the Atlantic City Hilton Casino over $115,000—the second-largest fine for underage gambling in the city's 31-year history of casino gaming. (Last year Bally's Atlantic City was slapped with a record-setting $157,500 fine for letting an underage customer gamble; the legal age there is 21.) The Hilton's teenage gambler, identified only as "M.R." by the gaming commission, was granted a player's account at the Hilton in 2007 and even given a free room. He was 19 at the time, but gave fake identification indicating he was 24. During the next 16 months, "M.R." traveled repeatedly to A.C. from Brooklyn, and in February 2008, he was arrested at a different casino for underage gambling. Still, the Hilton didn't know his real age until April 2008, when the Gaming Enforcement Division found a record for "M.R." at the Hilton, and notified the casino. But the next day, the casino permitted him to gamble some more, for nearly three hours. Linda Kassekert, chairwoman of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission, tells the AP, "We have a big concern about it because kids can make themselves look older, and that's problematic." Especially if they get lucky.
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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