Thomas Fabius, the 33-year old son of the France's foreign minister, faces criminal charges in the United States for writing bad checks in Las Vegas. A complaint in the Nevada state court states that Fabius wrote several checks to 3 different casinos in May 2012. When the casinos tried to cash those checks, the casino bursar's found there were insufficient funds to cover the cost.
Details of the Gambling Spree
On May 15, 2012, Thomas Fabius is alleged to have written three hot checks at for a total of $1,609,000 at the Palazzo Hotel and Casino. On the same day, he wrote 5 more checks for a total of $1 milion at the Aria Resort and Casino.
On May 16, Fabius went to the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas and wrote several checks for a toal of $900,000. In all, he spent $3.51 million in a two-day gambling spree on the Las Vegas Strip.
Laurent Fabius Appointed Foreign Minister
The betting spree took place one day before Laurent Fabius was appointed the French Foreign Minister, which is France's equivalent to the U.S. Secretary of State. The complaint against the younger Fabius suggests he wrote the checks to "obtain cash and/or gaming chips" for the purpose of gambling.
State of Nevada vs. Thomas Emmnuel Fabius
The person named on the complaint faces 3 counts of "passing a check with intent to defraud" and 3 three counts of "theft". Audrie Locke, a spokesperson for the Las Vegas Clark County District Attorney's office, said it has not been confirmed that the "Thomas Fabius" writing the checks was the same "Thomas Fabius" who is the son of the foreign minister, but an active warrant for the minister's son exists.
At present, the case is occurring in the Justice Court in Las Vegas. The case is labeled "State of Nevada vs. Thomas Emmanuel Fabius".
Similar Cases in the Recent Past
This is not the first time that a family member of a high-ranking diplomat has gotten in trouble for rampant high-roller gambling. In July 2014, Noha al-Daher, the ex-wife of Oman's foreign minister, Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Al-Busaidi, sued The Ritz casino for £2 million.
The multi-millionaire Mrs. al-Daher, who lives in the United Kingdom full-time, complained that the Ritz's staff cajoled her into gambling a little over £2 million during a gambling binge. She claimed they preyed upon her known gambling addiction, despite her having a well-documented history with gaming addiction.
Claims Ritz Staff Pushed Gambling on Her
Her lawyer, Barrister Robert Deacon, claimed she told the staff at the Ritz that she was "a gambling addict" and she did not want to play punto banco, a variant of baccarat. In the subsequent depiction of the scene, the barrister said the casino's staff continued to urge her al-Daher to take out markers for several hundred thousand dollars apiece.
Mr. Deacon said to Judge Anthony Seys Llewellyn that "the staff paid no regard to her distraught demeanour or what she told them and did nothing to discourage her from gambling or to reflect on the wisdom of further gambling." Despite the presentation, the UK court system ruled against the Omani top ambassador's wife.
Thomas Fabius: Vegas Casinos Appeared to Stop Offering Markers
The court records in Las Vegas show no sign that the 3 Las Vegas Strip casinos preyed upon Thomas Fabius. The fact he was able to pass checks for millions of dollars at three casinos suggests any reputation for gambling addiction he might have had were never reported to the Vegas gaming establishments.
Also, the fact that Fabius appears to have moved on from one casino to the next indicates that Palazzo and the Aria had eventually cut him off, after he lost a certain amount. The fact he left the Cosmopolitan down $900k suggests he also was denied a line of credit by the third Vegas casino, too.
