The following is an article from the Las Vegas Review Journal the 1^st of October regarding an alleged cheating scam known as “dice sliding.”

“The Strip resort has filed a lawsuit in Clark County District Court against frequent customers Leonardo Fernandez and Veronica Dabul, both Argentine nationals, asking for the return of about $700,000 Wynn officials say they illegally won during a month long cheating spree that ended with their arrest on July 18. The two are suspected of working with several unidentified customers who placed bets or distracted dealers and are accused of pulling off their gambit by using an infrequently seen technique known as dice sliding.”

During this past July, a husband and wife team from Argentina allegedly beat several Las Vegas Strip casinos out of hundreds of thousands of dollars by using a dice cheating technique known as a “dice scoot” or “dice slide.” On a number of occasions while shooting craps, after placing specific bets and employing other people to distract or block the view of the dealers, a “cheater” would set one of the dice on a specific number and use a “sliding” technique. This technique allows one die to slide the length of the table without turning over, while the second die bounces randomly off the back wall of the table. It was rumored that the couple wagered up to as much as $60,000 on the layout at the time the sliding technique was performed. In addition, it has also been rumored that the couple employed this technique successfully over a dozen times in each casino. The previous article states that the Wynn Resort/Casino is seeking restitution from couple for the tune of $700,000. The article also stated that it was a “month long” cheating spree.

As a casino executive with the responsibility of protecting the game of craps, you need to know all you can about this dice “sliding” technique. How can my staff spot it? What bets does the cheat usually make to take advantage of this technique? How does controlling one die effect the mathematics of the game? What actions can my staff take to prevent it?

What is a dice slide?

Most gaming people still believe a dice slide scam consists of a cheater sliding two dice down the length of the table, always face up and never turning or rotating. This is not true. First, a “throw” in this matter would be easily identifiable, not only by the casino employees but by the other players at the table. The dice cheater does not want the “slide” to look obvious and wants to conduct the sleight-of-hand-scam without detection. Second, based on properties of physics, a die that slides with absolutely no horizontal rotation, travels across the felt layout in a very unstable manner, and will have a tendency to “trip” or turn over. The more the die rotates or “spins”, the more likely it will maintain its level glide down the table and if it hits an object such as chips or the point marker (puck), the die won’t tip over.

From my experience, the dice slide must have an element of deception while at the same time providing the cheater with a high degree of outcome accuracy. In almost all cases, the cheaters attempt to control only one die. The second die, bouncing and hopping randomly, transfers some of the attention away from the die that is not. In addition, the more successful slides incorporate a slight-of-hand manipulation to “spin” the die. The die is spun by the cheater through a ‘finger snapping” method. This creates spin which greatly increases the die’s stability while sliding down the layout. It adds an element of deception to the die’s appearance as well.

Basic mathematics of the slide and the common wagering patterns

If the cheater can successfully control one die, how does it influence the outcome of a wager and how does the cheater take advantage of this situation? The game of craps is based on a two-dice outcome of 36 possible combinations.  When a cheater is able to control or “kill” the side of one die, he cuts the roll possibilities down to 6.

Although any side of the controlled die can be killed, the most common side is the “six.” When killing the six, the dice rolls will be six/one, six/two, six/three, six/four, six/five and six/six. The cheater will wager on all or a portion of these numbers when he attempts to control the dice. Anytime he bets these numbers or bets on the layout that covers a portion of these numbers, the dice slider has a sizeable advantage over the house.

The first dice slide I ever witnessed incorporated the “field” bet into the betting scheme. Why the field bet? You notice that four of the six possible numbers (9, 10, 11, & 12) are winning field rolls. As an added bonus, the “12” is supported by a multiple payoff of “double” and sometimes “triple” in the field.

Table 1 illustrates the cheater’s mathematical advantage when controlling the “six” side of one die. The cheaters have an advantage (EV) over the house of 66.7% on the single field bet when the house pays “triple” in the field on 12. In Table 1’s example, a $1,200 field bet earns a theoretical win of $800. This scheme allows the cheaters to place one sizable field wager, usually at the last moment, adding to the distraction factor.

In order to guarantee a winning result on every roll the cheaters may also make two additional wagers. The more common method is to bet the six/ace and six/two “on the hop.” The “hop” is a one roll wager that is placed on a specific combination; in this case the six/one combination and the six/two combination. If the cheaters place each of the two hop bets for $200, they’ll earn $1,600 each time the 6/1 or 6/2 is called [$3,000 (win) - $200 (losing hop) - $1,200 (losing field) = $1,600].

I have in my possession a video of a dice slide where the cheaters wagered only on hop bets. It illustrates an interesting build-up to the final dice slide. The cheater wagering made four hop wagers on the six/one, six/two, six/three, and six/four, and then had the stick dealer put him up on the eleven and twelve in the proposition wager boxes (along with a dealer two-way on the 11 & 12).

In the video the cheater placing the wagers builds a “persona” as a prop & hop bettor. On the “come out” roll he makes the bets in Table 2 each for $20. After losing on the come out and the next roll, the cheater pulls out a wad of hundreds, buys in for $1,200 and places the hops and props for $200 each. It’s immediately after these wagers a die killed on “six” slides down the middle of the table through the “come.” It’s apparent that the cheaters are attempting to “win” somewhere in the vicinity of $2,000 to $5,000, minus their set-up bets made on previous rolls.

There are probably a number of wagering combinations that can be used in conjunction with a killed six. I’ve also witnessed a dice scooting team who killed the “ace” side of the die. They also wagered in the field. In most cases the cheaters stay away from killing an ace. First, the “two” in the field never pays triple and second, the spinning die killed on the “ace” is not as deceptive as the dazzling white pattern of a spinning “six.”

Techniques used by cheaters when sliding dice

From the previous examples, it’s apparent that at least two people are involved in the dice slide scam; one player to make the bets and the shooter who slides the dice. Do the cheaters ever use more people to mask their play?

Even with a deceiving spinning die traveling down the table, the cheaters still conceal the dice slide attempt. This is accomplished by distracting the different members of the dice crew. In most cases, the cheater making a majority of the bets will stand on the opposite side of the stick person from the person sliding the dice. His or her job is to make a late proposition wager (or cash buy-in) to divert the box person’s attention. This cheater will also learn inward over the table, blocking the view of the stick person at the moment the dice are scooted down the table.

In some cases, the cheaters will go as far as to position other “distracters” to divert the attention of the base dealers and most importantly, the floor person supervising the game. This can easily be accomplished at the moment of the dice slide by asking the dealer/floor person a question. For example, a player could lean over toward the floor person and ask where the restrooms are located. In the seconds it takes to point out the location or give direction, the slid dice are resting at the end of the craps table and the dealers are cutting out the winning amount in chips.

The most obvious but effective dice slide distraction I have seen occurred in Atlantic City. The dice cheaters utilized a large breasted woman who, at the moment of the dice slide, pulls her top down exposing her breasts. The dice slide was accomplished and no one (including other players at the table) saw the dice slide occur.

One procedure that helps deter the dice slide scam is that the dice must roll all the way to the end of the table and bounce off the diamond back padded wall. If the spinning and sliding die were to glance off the diamond padding, the die will surely turn over, rendering the technique worthless. What do the cheaters do to circumvent this procedure?  The cheater looks for objects that they can slide the sliding die into that will cause it to “carom” safely away giving it the illusion of a fair roll. The primary item they go after is the “puck” used to mark the point. The puck is hard plastic, but it is encircled by two rubber O-rings.  The O-rings will absorb contact with the die evenly, allowing the die to spin off the puck without coming off the killed number. Another item is casino chips. I once watched a cheater place two stacks of $5 chips in the field moments prior to the second cheater sliding the die directly into the stacked chips. The chips absorbed the impact and the die did not turn over.

Dice slide defense techniques that can be used by the casino

By far, the best defense is knowledge. All of your floor personnel need to know about the dice sliding technique, the different indicators leading up to the dice slide and what to do if they notice a dice slide is taking place. Following are some suggestion you need to pass along to your dice dealers and supervisors:

• Knowing what a die looks like when it is spinning down the table is important. Accompanying this article is a link to the World Game Protection website. The link will take you to a short video Willy Allison and I compiled that show the dice scoot. Be sure to watch it and have all your personnel do the same thing. If you know what the slide looks like, it becomes second nature to spot. 

• The most common trait of the sliding die is the “fish hook” at the end of the slide. Because the die is spinning, the torque created by the die’s rotation will cause the die to curve in the direction of the spin when it starts to slow down.

• Know that the most common positioning for the dice slide cheaters is on opposite but immediate sides of the stick person. By positioning themselves next to the stick person, the person sliding the dice is standing the short distance to the far end of the table. The second cheater is positioned to block the view of the roll by the stick person while being in a good position to distract the box person with a cash buy-in or a later wager on the props or the field.

• Watch for late field wagers of near limit amounts. Also be aware of a customer wagering the hop bets surrounding a specific number like “six” or “ace.”

• Be sure that the players are instructed that they must roll the dice the length of the table, and if the dice don’t hit the back wall of the game, the dealer has the option to call “no roll.” Be sure that this policy is enforced in a friendly manner. Many players do not hit the back wall of the game on occasions and a harsh enforcement policy will hurt your ability to provide a high level of customer service.

• Management may opt to place an obstacle on the table that will prevent dice sliding. One method is to place a string at a height of several inches across the table from the box position to the stick person’s position. The players are then required to throw the dice over the string. Any throws that do not go over the string are called “no roll” by the stick dealer.

• Some casinos find the string across the table too encumbering. Instead, the casino might opt on placing a string under the layout. This string is positioned directly beneath the edges of the proposition wagering area; one string across and underneath the layout on the right side and a second one underneath the layout on the left side. The string beneath the layout acts as a “speed bump” causing the sliding die to turn over.

• Do not allow marketing to dictate that certain high limit customers don’t have to follow your established policies for shooting the dice. Giving policy and procedure concessions to high rolling customer is an invitation for a serious loss.

Legalities

One big question I hear from executives is “Is sliding the dice illegal?” Yes, it is! However, it’s not a simple yes or no answer. Certain elements must be in place before it’s considered cheating in the State of Nevada. In 1994, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled in the case of Skipper vs. the State of Nevada. A lower court had convicted Hubert Skipper of cheating at dice. Skipper’s attorney appealed based on the State Supreme Court’s rule on handle popping in slot machines. His argument was that the casino requires a player to throw the dice down the table and also has the ability to call “no roll” if the throw is not considered a valid roll. Given this option, the casino should have simply “no rolled” Skipper instead of arresting him.

The Nevada Supreme Court reviewed the case and came up with the following finding upholding the lower court decision that dice sliding was cheating:

While playing craps at two different gaming establishments in Reno, Skipper was videotaped throwing the dice in a manner that is colloquially referred to as “dice sliding.” As the term implies, dice sliding occurs when one or both of the dice slides down the table without tumbling or otherwise altering the number(s) preselected by the gambler to face upward. Dice sliding is a difficult manipulation because it requires both dexterity of the fingers and the aid of an inattentive or collaborating craps dealer or, as here, an accomplice who is able to obscure the dealer's view of play. The surveillance tapes admitted into evidence show that this person’s occasional attempts to slide a die (some of which were successful) were preceded by changes in his betting pattern and manner of throw. Additionally, Skipper refrained from such attempts whenever the floor boss was watching the game. More importantly, the tapes show that this person’s method of play was aided by a confederate who sought to block the dealer's view of the sliding die.

The game of craps understandably involves players who throw the dice in accordance with the rules of play. The rules of play require the “roll” of the dice, thus resulting in the dice either tumbling or bouncing off the end of the table as a result of the player's throw. The evidence adduced at trial indicated that craps dealers are trained to call a “no roll” unless the dice are thrown in the manner described. Thus players who may accidently slide the dice simply have their play nullified by the dealer's call. Skipper, however, sought to prevent the dealer from detecting and invalidating his method of play by utilizing a confederate to obscure the dealer's vision. In effect, Skipper was blindfolding the dealer while placing the dice on the table in a winning combination. This method of altering the elements of chance clearly constitutes cheating. Innocent players would not engage in this type of deceptive, manipulated play.

Special thanks to I Nelson Rose. For more information on this and other legal gaming related matters please go to www.GamblingAndTheLaw.com.

Conclusion

The threat of a dice slide occurring on your table is nothing that can be scuffed off. Management needs to be aware of the situation and needs to educate their staff as to what to look for. Management also needs to allow the floor staff to do their job without influence or interference from the marketing department, especially concerning higher limit players. At the same time, management also needs to remain flexible with the player who rolls an occasional “short” roll. Running the table with an “iron fist” can be detrimental to customer service and long-term casino revenue.

In addition to this article, a short video on dice sliding was made by Willy Allison and myself and can be found at the following web link. Special thanks to Joel Lauer and the PCI dealing school for allowing us the use of their facility.

Video: Dice Sliding with Bill Zender

Contact Bill Zender: wzender@lastresortconsulting.com | Forward to Friend