Charge Dropped for $700K Theft

Posted on: December 7, 2023, 08:29h. 

Last updated on: December 7, 2023, 08:29h.

The embezzlement charge against a cash cage supervisor at Michigan’s Four Winds Hartford Casino was dropped by prosecutors this week.

The defendant, Danika Young, 38, was arrested for allegedly stealing $700K from the gaming property on July 30, according to Michigan TV station WOOD.

If she had been convicted on the embezzlement by an employee of $100,000 or more charge, she could have faced up to 20 years in prison.

It’s unclear why Van Buren County prosecutors dropped the charge.

Young claimed she was telephoned and told to bring the money to a person in Gary, Indiana.

After getting the call, she counted out $700K, put it in a bag, and walked out of the casino, a police officer testified during a July 31 probable cause hearing.

Relief About Decision

“She is thrilled,” Caleb Grimes, a criminal defense attorney who represented the woman, told WOOD. “Her family is thrilled. She feels extremely vindicated. Her position hasn’t wavered from the beginning that she didn’t do anything wrong.”

After talking with everybody, they were convinced that she didn’t do anything wrong and committed no criminal activity,” Grimes added.

Young worked at Four Winds for 16 years and is mother to a child. She also has relatives in the region.

It’s possible a nefarious scheme targeted Young and used artificial intelligence to suggest the call came from inside the casino, and appeared to come from casino executives, WOOD reported.

Four Winds Hartford Casino is located in Hartford, Mich.  It’s some 80 miles south of Grand Rapids.

The gaming property is one of four that are owned and operated by the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians.

Naked Casino Visitor Enters Plea

A man who walked nude in Oklahoma’s First Council Casino pleaded guilty to a charge in court on Wednesday.

Norman Rhodes entered the plea to a count of outraging public decency, according to Oklahoma TV station KOKH.

He won’t be spending any time in jail if he completes his probation. A judge gave him a one-year suspended sentence and he will be under supervision for the same 12 months.

Rhodes must also undergo a mental health evaluation, complete 60 hours of community service, and pay court costs, KOKH reported.

In addition to his walk in the nude, Rhodes jumped on top of a security desk at the casino-hotel, police said.

When officers arrived, Rhodes was on a couch in the casino-hotel’s lobby. He was wearing a ripped shirt and had on a towel, the Kay County News Cow, a local news outlet, reported. He told police he had been not wearing clothes because he was hot, according to KOKH.

Rhodes was also coloring pages in a coloring book, police revealed. Casino staff had given him the book.

When officers searched the hotel-casino, they found four pairs of sweats belonging to Rhodes. A fifth pair was located in a microwave oven.

Police had EMTs examine Rhodes. It turned out he had taken a medication or drug, and it may have impacted his behavior, KOKH reported.