West Bloomfield Man Accused in Casino Cheating Conspiracy

WEST BLOOMFIELD, MI – Two Oakland County residents — Hayword Milton Stampley, 57, of West Bloomfield, and Roxanna Dee McKinney, 49, of Farmington Hills, and — tied to a Detroit casino dealer are among seven people charged with felonies in an alleged scheme to steal money from Motor City Casino in Detroit.

In a statement, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said the scheme involved hundreds of dollars of individual payouts on lost bets during games of Texas Hold’em. The Motor City Casino asked Schuette’s office to investigate possible dealer/player collusion.

The card dealer, Darryl Green, 53, of Detroit, who was employed by the casino in 2014 when the alleged acts took place, allegedly conspired with the six other defendants to make payouts to them on losing bets or simply not collect payment on lost bets, Schuette said.

The investigation showed that McKinney, Stampley and four others — Leah Katrelle Smith, 42, of Melvindale, and Eugene Davis Jr., 32, Earl Leonard Railey, 65, and Calvin Lawrence Pullom, 47 — knew Green and associated with him outside of the casino prior to and after the alleged cheating, Schuette said.

Each of the defendants is charged with:

• One count of Conspiracy to Cheat at a Gambling Game, a five year felony;
• One count of Gambling activities, a 10 year felony;
• One count of Conspiracy to Commit Larceny in a building, a four year felony;
• One count of Larceny in a building, a four year felony.

Green, Davis, Pullom, Stampley and Smith have been arraigned in the Wayne County 36th District Court, and bond was set for each defendant as follows:

• Green: $5,000, personal bond;
• Davis: $10,000, personal bond;
• Pullom: $5,000, $500 cash was required to be paid before release;
• Stampley: $10,000, personal bond;
• Smith: $5,000, personal bond.

Two of the defendants, also charged as habitual offenders, remain wanted by the Michigan State Police. Railey is charged as a habitual offender-fourth offense and McKinney is charged as a habitual offender-second offense.

The five arraigned defendants are due in court for a preliminary examination on March 1. The defendants were given the opportunity to turn themselves in, and have been arraigned over the last two weeks. The court is still awaiting appearances from defendants Railey and McKinney.

» Photo via Flickr / Creative Commons