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How did counterfeiters Eric Morawa and Jeremy Lewis cheat Las Vegas casinos?

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by (120 points)
What method did Eric Morawa and Jeremy Lewis use to cheat casinos in Las Vegas?

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by (260 points)
Eric Morawa and Jeremy Lewis cheated Las Vegas casinos by counterfeiting casino chips. They started by modifying low denomination chips into high denomination ones, essentially turning $1 chips into $100 chips. They did this by removing the inlay from the center of the chip, repainting it, and creating a phony $100 graphic inlay to insert into the chip. They also added a security feature that would glow under a black light to make the chips appear authentic. This scam allowed them to profit significantly by cashing in the counterfeit chips.
by (100 points)
Bail for making counterfeit chips is higher than murdering a person speaks VOLUMES on why our system is broken, shady & priorities are screwed up.
by (100 points)
I feel so bad for Morikowa. He actually seems like a genuinely good dude. His stupid partner just had to go and pillow talk with a sheisty prostitute. The resourcefulness and creativity of people who cheat Vegas absolutely amazes me
by (100 points)
"Our state takes this very seriously"

Placing someone robbing thieves above rapists and murderes says alot about NV.
by (100 points)
When Morikawa said his lifestyle changed to “eating out at nice restaurants” and smirked, I couldn’t help but laugh lol
by (100 points)
if Morikawa had stayed lone wolf the whole time, he would never get caught.
he has the perfect attitude of doing criminal activity, careful and secretive. it's just his partner that's a liability.
by (100 points)
Over $1mil and they could only find $36k. Legend!
by (100 points)
If this guy did this alone, and he only cashed in like 2 or 3k a week, he could get away with it for life.
by (100 points)
Imagine how much they would’ve made if they never told that lady.  Literally might have cost them millions.
by (100 points)
Never partner with a junkie .  Dude should have stayed a lone wolf.
by (100 points)
The first guy that made the chips seems like a genuinely nice guy. Hope he got his life straight.
by (100 points)
Casino Lady: "it took them 5 minutes to make a new chip it was that simple"
Narriator: "they made TWENTY chips a day"
by (100 points)
Glad they made that dramatic reenactment otherwise I'd have no clue how to imagine guys making fake chips in a garage
by (100 points)
In 1992 when the Foxwoods casino opened in CT, a man rented a room for six months. He told the cleaning crew he had a phobia and to never clean his room; he would do it himself. About five months later, a new cleaning lady went to clean his room and discovered the guys printing press where he was printing $100 faces on $1 chips. It's estimated he stole over 2 million from Foxwoods. This is a full 13 years before these guys in Vegas made fake chips. Not sure why the video didn't reference this as it's still available on google.
by (100 points)
"Within 5 minutes they could have a new Chip, it was that simple."   15 seconds later, "They could make 20 chips a day"
by (100 points)
The irony at 31:32 is unreal. Dude doesn't realize he's describing casinos themselves.

"He's a predator. He's a shark swimming among the anchovies out there. He's looking for the lazy person, trying to find that weak link that we have and take advantage of it."
by (100 points)
If his buddy didn't tell the stranger...this still would have been happening.
by (100 points)
The mastermind was a genius about everything...EXCEPT one thing he overlooked- The partner he chose. He didn't imagine his partner would use all that money to buy meth and strippers and start blabbing his mouth and bragging about how they got the money.
by (100 points)
The fact they set those guys bail at 5 million dollars tells you exactly who owns and operates the law in Nevada.
by (100 points)
I served in Afghanistan and I don't think I come anywhere close to the level of hero that this guy has achieved. I only wished that you had ran those crooks for tens of millions rather than just 1 mil.
by (100 points)
The lady that ratted them out would have been dead if it was someone else.
by (100 points)
The thing that always baffles me about this is they made all this money and never once thought to use the cash to move their operation out of their garage. Every time they get caught all the evidence is just in their main resident lmao
by (100 points)
I can't believe that the counterfeiters didn't threaten the girl or shoot her while paying her off. I guess she just knew that the guy was too nice for that.
by (100 points)
"Morikawa wanted not to make his hand dirty" vs. "Invite your accomplice to your house for a training, keeping the training materials in your garage"... well done!
by (100 points)
Crime is always a catch22. It was near impissible for him to do it alone but the moment he brought another person in it's almost certain he'd get caught
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