Every Man Is His Own Worst Enemy

It's amazing how a guy is smart enough to figure out how to do this, and get away with it, and then he just can't shut up. This happens all the time. You don't get caught doing things, you get caught talking about doing things.

I love the part where the guy's dad is a judge. People don't know this, but judges have a pretty wild lifestyle. Not just wearing the robes and all that, but behind the scenes these guys can party. And lots of times they take some of the money, like I'm sure this judge will pocket a few chips and be off to the races.

Also great to give the casino advance notice. When this guy gets out, he's going to get it EXACTLY right the next time. I know it. We'll talk in ten years, give or take a few.

Reporting from Las Vegas — Anthony Carleo needed to ditch some "cranberries." Fast. And this week, authorities said, he found an eager buyer.

The man agreed to meet Carleo at the lavish Bellagio casino, where in early December a gunman had swiped $1.5 million in casino chips, including $25,000 chips known as cranberries, and sped off on a motorcycle.

Las Vegas police say Carleo sold the man a $25,000 Bellagio chip that Carleo said had been stolen. The next night, court papers said, Carleo sold the man four more.

When the man told Carleo he wanted to assemble a crew to rip off Las Vegas casinos, Carleo's reaction was blase, police said. He had already robbed the Bellagio, they said he told the man, who turned out to be an undercover officer.

Police arrested Carleo late Wednesday at the Bellagio — where he had been staying on and off since the theft — on suspicion of armed robbery and burglary. His bail was set at $15,000, according to jail records, and he is scheduled to appear in court Monday.

Carleo, 29, is the son of local Municipal Court Judge George Assad. "I think it goes without saying that as a father, I am devastated and heartbroken to see my son arrested under these circumstances," the judge said Thursday in a statement.

Court documents portray Carleo as a luckless gambler and a somewhat careless thief. On Dec. 11, he told a Bellagio poker dealer he would love to pocket some cranberries.

"Man, how easy would it be to rob a casino?" Carleo said, according to court papers.

"Dude, you watch 'Ocean's Eleven' too much. This is real life and that … doesn't happen," the dealer reportedly said.

"Oh, no, it's not that hard. All you need is a black mask and a motorcycle, and I have a motorcycle," Carleo said, according to court documents.

[Los Angeles Times]