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Two Years In Prison For Using Infrared Contact Lenses To Cheat At Poker

Posted by Soulskill on from the somebody-warn-levar-burton dept.

dmfinn writes "It was back in 2011 when Stefano Ampollini and two accomplices cheated a French casino out of over €90,000 thanks to the help of Chinese-made infrared contact lenses. According to French authorities, Ampollini and two casino workers marked cards using an invisible liquid that would be picked up by the infrared lenses, which Ampollini then used to read his competitors' cards. Though the contacts themselves cost over €2,000, the crew managed to take €71,000 in their first night. However, the trio was finally caught when a lawyer working for the casino became suspicious after Ampollini folded with an unbelievably good hand, which suggested he knew the croupier's cards. This week, a French court sentenced Ampollini to two years in prison and a €100,000 fine. His main accomplice was handed an even harsher sentence; he was forced to pay the same fine and given a 36-month sentence. It appears, despite their best efforts and advanced tactics, that the men were still unable to beat the house without raising significant alarms. So, at least for now, it seems modern technology still can't simulate good old 'luck.'"

14 of 320 comments (clear)

  1. They were greedy by bartron · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Be greedy and you raise suspicion. If you have a hand that you would consider a winning hand under normal circumstances then you play it, regardless if you know you will lose. Start doing impossible or improbable moves and you may as well be wearing a huge neon arrow sign on your head.

    1. Re:They were greedy by Tom · · Score: 5, Insightful

      This. Every cheater knows that to stay undetected, you can't win too often. Even aimbots quickly included code to intentionally miss a shot every now and then.

      There are only two ways to get away with stealing money at a casino. One is to remain within the margin if probability - appear to be lucky, but not impossibly lucky. Either win some, lose some, with a total just slightly in your favour, or lose mostly, but then get the jackpot and stop playing after that. Make it a huge thing. Celebrate, rent a limo, marry a stranger, whatever. Don't pocket it and vanish, that'll be crazy suspicious.

      Oh, the second way. That is, of course, to own the casino.

      --
      Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
    2. Re:They were greedy by jandersen · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Greedy? I suppose so. But it has always struck me as a funny way to look at things, when casinoes call people cheaters; they are the ones who invite people to come and throw their money out against overwhelming odds: "You MIGHT win" - yeah, and all the air molecules in the room might suddenly end up in one corner. After all, it is only probability that keeps it from happening.

      The standard argument one always hears is that "Nobody forces people go and be stupid". All that means, IMO, is that some people don't have the backbone to stand up for decency.

    3. Re:They were greedy by khallow · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The standard argument one always hears is that "Nobody forces people go and be stupid".

      Yep. It pretty much is a discussion ender.

      All that means, IMO, is that some people don't have the backbone to stand up for decency.

      Or that "decency" of your sort is worthless. As I see it, I live in a mostly free country. That means people have the freedom to make bad decisions. And lo and behold, they do indeed make bad decisions. Maybe you should do something about the weather while you're at it.

    4. Re:They were greedy by Oligonicella · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yep. Glaringly obvious difference is a casino owns their own house. Unless of course, you believe the government owns the country and not the other way 'round.

    5. Re:They were greedy by TheCarp · · Score: 4, Insightful

      That sounds very plausible. I bet a real player has a firing solution on a target far more often than he actually realizes it. Though knowing the technique does give some ideas on how to catch it.

      > source: i wrote hacks for cs and cheated in the highest ranks of CAL without ever being suspected let alone caught.

      Which I think brings up one of the reason casinos attract cheats beyond the money. Cheating and winning is a game too. In fact, its really no different from a bluff, you are not playing by the same rules, but you want to look like you are. However, in a casino, you have to do it while sitting in front of real people. I have to imagine that is a rush and a half....which like bluffing.... is also why so few can really do it well consistently.

      If your motivation is being the best cheater.... then no amount of bitching about how it ruins the game for the rest of us is going to help.

      Amusingly, I have a relative who is um I think almost 14 now. He started running cheats in games a couple of years ago after some cheater did something and convinced a bunch of other people he was the one running cheats. So they banned him and he started googling to figure out what they were talking about! Next thing you know, he is griefing himself.

      Ahhhh kids.

      --
      "I opened my eyes, and everything went dark again"
  2. Just avoid being stupid by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    On the other hand, how did the "lawyer working for the casino" know the hand that the crook folded with? That sounds like we are talking about crooks on both sides. An important part of poker is that folding does not expose your betting strategy.

    1. Re: Just avoid being stupid by Dahamma · · Score: 4, Insightful

      How about this: RTFA and as usual it answers all of your questions and more...

  3. Outliers and out and out liars... by DontScotty · · Score: 3, Insightful

    If you find a way to game the gaming system, you will appear as an anomaly.

    And, anomaly detection will highlight you as such.

    Winning at a game of chance over a long enough sample period? Cheating is more probable than an improbable string of luck.

    The only effective way to steal is to steal from people who are powerless to detect it, powerless to stop it, or weak enough in both areas.

    Can you win the day at a casino? YES.

    Can you win during your entire life? YES, considering your life will probably be forfeit when you've stolen too much from the wrong people.

  4. They got off easy by VinylRecords · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Two years? For cheating at cards? That's nothing. Lots of people are killed over cheating at high stakes gambling. You cheat the casinos and they usually take it up with the police and lawyers. They can't break your legs and keep operating a legitimate business.

    You cheat a private game? You deal with individuals who might smash your fucking face in and throw you in a six foot feet hole in the desert. At the very least you get beaten within an inch of your life and then they take back all of your 'winnings'. Those guys should have tried to get into a private game where high rollers in organized crime or even professional sports play.

    The most hilarious part about this story though. Is that there are bankers that make billions cheating the system. Insider trading, fraud, embezzlement, Ponzi scheme, and so on. And those guys get a free pass as long as they throw the occasional six-figure-pass to the politicians. These morons get two years for cheating the casinos.

  5. Re:Your Bullshit is BS by wvmarle · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It was not the croupier, but some casino lawyer who got suspicious. For all we know this lawyer could have been in the audience, just standing behind the player looking at the player's cards.

    Besides, the casino's play is usually bound to fixed rules, and the croupier has no influence on it.

  6. Re:The house ALWAYS wins. by jamesh · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Even if it somehow loses. They WILL find a way to win.

    If the house loses, it's because someone is cheating. That's how they tell you are cheating - if you are winning in a game of chance with the odds firmly tilted in the houses favour then you must be cheating. It's that simple.

  7. Re:Your Bullshit is BS is bullshit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I know, you're right ...

    I hate it when Slashdot covers stories about casinos, poker or gambling. A large percentage of the posters and mods know very little about the gambling industry, but participate anyway.

    It makes me realize that the same people must be posting comments about stories where I have very little knowledge of the subject matter. People in general seem more and more obsessed with "sounding" knowledgeable than actually being knowledgeable.

  8. Re:Your Bullshit is BS by InvalidError · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Normal floor staff does not communicate with the security and anti-cheating staff.

    What likely happened:
    1- anti-cheating staff noticed someone with statistics-defying luck
    2- the staff couldn't figure out how he was cheating with their normal monitoring
    3- the table was instructed to change decks and save the player's hand (it is a common procedure)
    4- the anti-cheat staff looked at the discarded hand, concluded that no normal player would have folded on it under normal circumstances, analyzed the cards and found out about the IR markings
    5- anti-cheat staff investigated who handled those decks and put them under increased surveillance
    6- next time "lucky" showed up and showcased his odds-defying luck, they busted him and his accomplices to find out what his IR detection method was