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Steven Henshaw, Reading Eagle, Pa.
·2 min read

Sep. 7—State police have charged a Chester County man with repeatedly employing sleight of hand to cheat Hollywood Casino Morgantown while playing a poker-based table game.

Monther G.A. Madanat, 56, of Coatesville remained free to await further court action after waiving a preliminary hearing Tuesday before District Judge David. E. Glass in Birdsboro.

Troopers at the Reading station charged him by summons June 16 with manipulating to increase a winning or reduce a loss, theft by deception and related counts.

According to the probable cause affidavit:

On May 10 about 1 p.m. troopers responded to the mini-casino on Morgantown Road in Caernarvon Township after receiving a report from the casino of a cheating incident. State police are responsible for law enforcement in casinos.

Trooper Vincent Morgan interviewed the assistant pit manager and table games dealer. Both described how a customer was cheating at "Heads up Hold 'Em," the previous day.

The patron was identified by his Hollywood Casino player's card as Monther Madanat.

Madanat's behavior was described by the employees as both "pinching" and "capping" his wagers, which are made by placing casino-issued chips on the game board.

"By sleight of hand or fraudulent scheme, Madanat would illegally increase or decrease his wagers after the outcome of the hand in play was already known," Morgan wrote in the affidavit. "He would decrease his wagers when he had a losing hand and increase his wagers when he had a winning hand."

In doing so, he illegally reduced his gaming losses and increased his winnings.

Security camera footage showed that Madanat successfully manipulated his wagers 15 times while playing the game.

A conviction for cheating at a casino in Pennsylvania carries a penalty of one to six years in prison and a $10,000 fine.