Editor’s note: This article has been revised to include Hairston’s addition to the list.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) has included an additional individual in its Excluded Person list, also known as Nevada’s “Black Book.” Leonard Morgan Hairston was added to the list on November 18, making him the most recent addition.
The Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) decided during its November monthly meeting whether Hairston would be banned from entering a Nevada casino.
Films and television series often portray the Black Book as a comprehensive list of fraudsters and unscrupulous individuals who are banned from Nevada casinos. However, this isn’t entirely accurate.
Hairston is only the 37th individual on Nevada’s Excluded Person list.
The latest name added to the Black Book in August was Kendrick Laronte Weatherspoon, but his inclusion was for a unique reason compared to the majority. The Nevada casinos prohibited him due to his “history of assaulting women and coercing them into prostitution at Strip resorts,” as reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Hairston’s record of cheating Nevada casinos
Hairston has a lengthy track record of trying to swindle casinos and has been apprehended 34 times for various crimes.
He is a multiple felon, charged by authorities with theft, along with the creation and usage of counterfeit casino chips.
In 2004, Hairston used two counterfeit $25 Palms chips at Fremont Casino, which were actually old chips from Dunes, a casino that had closed in 1993.
A few days later, Hairston attempted the same trick at another casino in downtown Las Vegas. This time, he tried to use counterfeit $25 chips from Palms at Fitzgeralds, which is now called The D.
Hairston was apprehended by police at Fitzgeralds, where they discovered he had more counterfeit casino chips. He was caught with fraudulent $100 chips from:
- Bellagio
- Rock Hard
- Luxor
- Bay of Mandalay
At a board meeting last month, Deputy Attorney General John Michela characterized Hairston as a “serial gaming offender incapable of staying out of trouble.”
Black Book was likely for Hairston
It was anticipated that Hairston would be added to the Excluded Person list. His numerous crimes over the years, unlike Weatherspoon’s, had a direct impact on casino businesses.
Michela further stated that Hairston’s extensive criminal record makes him a top contender for the Excluded Person list. NGCB member Philip Katsaros chimed in with:
Without a doubt, he’s somewhat of a threat to our regulatory supervision of the casinos. It’s alarming to consider how many more agents we might require if numerous others engaged in criminal activities at the same level as this individual.
Should the commission decide to include Hairston on the list, he would become the second individual to be banned by Nevada casinos in the last three months. The NGC cast their votes on the issue at their November meeting.
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