Jubreal Chahine, one of the most notorious gambling cheats in the country, was arrested on Saturday in Pennsylvania. Mr. Chahine was arrested in the Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem, a suburb of Philadelphia.
While he was gambling inside the casino, Sands surveillance agents spotted him and made a positive identification around 4 p.m. Sands security alerted state police, who made the arrest in the case.
Charges and Arraignment
Full details of the crimes Mr. Chahine is alleged to have committed in Nevada remain unclear. The 40 year old Jubreal Chahine is listed as a "most wanted" fugitive in Nevada, where he was a known cheat. Mr. Chahine is charged with 14 NCIC felony counts of "committed or attempted fraudulent acts in a gaming establishment", 6 NCJIS felony counts of "committed or attempted fraudulent acts in a gaming establishment", and 1 NCJIS count of felony burglary.
After his arrest by Pennsylvania authorities, Chahine was arraigned in the court of District Judge Robert Hawke. The suspect is being held in Northampton County Prison. Bail was set at $150,000.
Commit or Attempt Fraudulent Acts in a Gaming Establishment
According to the "Las Vegas Defense Group", Nevada's legal system views most of the crimes similar to "insider trading". The definition is broad, but it boils down to using special information to get an advantage in a casino betting environment.
For instance, if a gambler knows one of the dealers at a casino and the dealer tells the gambler the deck is "hot", if the gambler then uses this information to make wagers, it is illegal. The crime would be "Commit or Attempt Fraudulent Acts in a Gaming Establishment", which is what Jubreal Chahine is accused of doing. Also, a person does not have to make a bet in order to be guilty of a crime. In the previous example, the dealer is also guilty of a crime.
Furthermore, if the gambler loses these subsequent bets, he or she is still guilty of a crime. Using inside information when making bets is a crime, whether you win or lose. The same laws apply when someone manipulates gambling devices, such as wheel gaffing in roulette or using an electronic wand when playing the slots.
Defenses in Jubreal Chahine's Case
Legal defenses in such cases typically come down to three possibilities: insufficient evidence, no fraud, or illegal search. In the case of "no fraud", if the defendant's lawyer can demonstrate that security or law enforcement thought the person was committing fraud when they were really just lucky or savvy, then the charges could be dropped.
Also, if the prosecution has too many inconsistencies or insufficient evidence, then this can place reasonable doubt in the minds of a jury. In these cases, a jury might suspect an alleged cheat has committed a crime, but a reasonable doubt remains whether this happened or not. Remember, the key term is "reasonable"--you can never know for certain, but make inferences based on the evidence.
Finally, if an illegal search was used to obtain evidence, then the defense can make a motion to suppress evidence in a case. In some cases, when these motions work, a D.A. might choose to throw out the whole case. In the case of cheating inside a casino, video evidence often exists, so it is not easy to throw out a case on these grounds.
Jubreal Chahine Aliases
In his life prior to arrest, Jubreal Chahine has used a number of aliases. These included Alexander Gabriel Allen, Allen Gabriel Alexander, Jubreal Chachine, Gabriell A Alexander, Gabriel A Allen, Jubreal Chahin, Gabriell Allen Alexander, and Allen G. Allen. Jubreal Chahine would have been fairly easy to spot in the casino, as he stands 6'3" and weighs 240 pounds. His birth date is April 4, 1974. Though he was a wanted alleged felon, he had a Facebook page which was last updated on March 12 of this year.
Chahine's open questions on Yahoo! Answers are perhaps more interesting. The questions, which ranged back to 2011, involved whether officials at the airports check for warrants when leaving the country, whether a person with a felony warrant for theft could leae the country, how easy it is to get Lebanese citizenship if you're from America, and whether a U.S. citizen in a foreign country can renew their passport if they have felony warrants. Another question involved directions from Harrah's Casino in Chester, Pennsylvania from New York City. Perhaps the most interesting part of these online accounts is they were registered in his birthname. Social networking accounts have become a prime source of information for potential employers, landlords, potential dating partners, and even law enforcement officials.
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