A 25-year-old man is accused of stealing more than $18,000 from a Washington County casino by moving cards around in multiple hands of “Ultimate Texas Hold ‘em,” according to state police.
State police charged Brando Castaneda, of Washington, Pa. with one felony count of theft Thursday for the crime alleged to have occurred at Hollywood Casino at the Meadows in North Strabane on Jan. 10.
According to state police, Castaneda was playing multiple hands of the game at one time.
During 31 rounds of play, police say he switched cards from multiple hands to make one winning hand, and moved winning hands from one hand of play to another to receive a higher winning payout.
Over the course of the 31 rounds of what police said was deceptive play, Castaneda received $18,492 in winning payouts that he should not have received.
Castaneda did not have an attorney listed in court records and had not been arraigned on the charge as of Saturday, according to court records.
