Borgata Chip Faker Pleads Guilty

Borgata Chip Faker Pleads Guilty

Monday, 17 August 2015

Christian Lusardi, the man who was accused of flushing fake poker chips down the toilet of an Atlantic City casino, has pleaded guilty.

Following a lengthy trial during which he was incarcerated and charged with separate offenses, Lusardi has admitted second-degree trademark counterfeiting and third-degree criminal mischief related to blocking the toilet inside Harrah's Atlantic City.

The news came to light late last week after a press release was published by the New Jersey Attorney General's office. Owing to his confession and subsequent plea bargain, Lusardi will likely serve five years behind bars for counterfeiting crimes and a further three years for criminal mischief.

Although the official sentence won't be handed out until October 22, it's thought that the recommendation will be upheld given Lusardi's previous convictions for fraud.

The incident that landed Lusardi in hot water dates back to 2014 and the Borgata Winter Poker Open. At the time the tournament was sent into chaos and eventually cancelled after it was revealed that more than two million fake chips had been introduced into play.

With the heat on, Lusardi reportedly fled to Harrah's casino and disposed on the remaining fake chips down a toilet. After the chips caused a major flood an investigation into the incident was launched and Lusardi was eventually tracked down and charged with counterfeiting crimes.



Tags: Christian Lusardi, Borgata Winter Poker Open, Harrah's Atlantic City, New Jersey