Pogos Simityan, Vahan Sudzhyan, and Gevorg Avagyan are a trio accused of stealing about $126,000 in table games. The three are accused of cheating at games in Paris Las Vegas, The Wynn, and Planet Hollywood casinos. They used the card bending trick in all three casinos.
Las Vegas police arrested Pogos on Monday. Vahan and Gevorg were arrested beforehand and charged with collusion to commit a crime.
The two pleaded guilty, and their charges against them were lessened. The charges against Pogos Simityan were cheating in a gaming establishment, committing fraudulent activities, and cheating at gaming.
What is Card-Bending?
Most cards are made of paper and coated with a thin coating of plastic. This makes it easier for poker players to cheat, especially at home games.
Card-bending is a trick of marking a card by slightly bending a card either inwards or outwards.
The side which is folded indicates the value of the card. The player who has bent the card will be able to tell the value of a dealer’s hole once the dealer lays them on the tables.
How the Three Were Caught
The manager at the Paris Las Vegas casino noticed the suspicious activities of the three men. On July 4, 2021, the manager phoned the Nevada Gaming Control Board and reported the trio bending the cards during their gameplay. Pogos was also seen bending face cards and aces during Let It Ride and Mississippi Stud Poker.
The authorities reviewed the video of the three men playing, and they were detained. When investigations by the gaming control officers started, Pogos claimed to be experiencing chest pains. He was granted permission to go to the hospital.
Besides the incident at the Paris Las Vegas casino, gaming officials accused Pogos Simityan, Vahan Sudzhyan, and Gevorg Avagyan of bending cards on July 3, 2021, at Planet Hollywood. Again on July 5, 2021, the representatives at The Wynn informed the gaming control officers that the trio conned them out of $19,000.
Vahan and Gevorg agreed to pay compensation. Additionally, the two might serve jail time after sentencing. However, the judge ordered Pogos to stay away from all casino establishments until his next hearing.
According to the World Series of Poker (WSOP), Pogos and Vahan are poker players with lifetime incomes. Pogos has a net worth of $61,767, while Vahan has a net worth of $75,216. The accusations against the players are likely to see them lose their earnings and also spend time in jail.
Preventing Card-Bending in Your Home Games
Card players can have some tricks up their sleeves when they want to cheat on a game. However, you can prevent cheating by being a careful observer. Here are some ways to help you prevent cheating:
- The person shuffling the cards should never deal with the cards.
- Check out for peculiar changes in shuffling style, odd hand motions, and strange card grips.
- Count the cards regularly to ensure there are no cards missing
- Ensure players eat at random to avoid conspiracy
- Check the deck regularly for folds, bends, and marks
