Seminole Hard Rock Casino Customers Tailed Home, Robbed – Alleged Thief Arrested

Posted on: September 2, 2022, 04:56h. 

Last updated on: September 2, 2022, 06:13h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More
Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

A man remains in custody after he was arrested Wednesday for robbing two victims in Boca Raton, Fla., in July, police said. The victims had just returned to the outside of their residence after they spent most of the night in the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Fla.

Kwame Moorer
Kwame Moorer in a mug shot. He allegedly robbed two people who had been at a Florida casino. (Image: Miami-Dade County Corrections)

Kwame Moorer, 30, of Opa Locka, Fla. allegedly followed the pair for 27 miles from the gaming property on July 25. He pulled out a firearm when he approached them after they exited their car, police said.

The suspect then ordered the duo to turn over their cash and valuables. Moorer then allegedly grabbed their wallets, phones, and money, jumping over a cement wall when he was done. Then, he allegedly fired one bullet toward them before fleeing in an SUV parked nearby. No one was injured in the incident.

Police used casino surveillance video to help identify the suspect. He is now charged with robbery with a firearm and aggravated assault with a firearm. He was incarcerated in the Miami-Dade County Jail on Friday.

The suspect was wearing dark pants, a long sleeve hoodie, and black mask at the time of the holdup, BocaNewsNow, a local news site, reported.

Similar incidents have taken place across the country.

Pistol-Whipped

In February, an elderly man who drove home from Rivers Casino Pittsburgh was pistol-whipped and robbed of his winnings in front of his Aspinwall, Pa. residence.

The alleged assailant, Jaimeca Johnson, a 28-year-old woman of Forest Hills, Pa., allegedly followed him for the 8.2-mile journey.

As he entered his driveway, Johnson allegedly pointed a gun at the victim and threatened: “Give me the money or I’ll shoot you.”

She also struck him with the firearm, stole about $1,500 from his pocket, and then fled from the neighborhood, police revealed.

The unnamed, 66-year-old victim suffered head and face injuries. Initially, he was treated at UPMC St. Margaret hospital in Aspinwall. But he was later transferred to UPMC Presbyterian hospital and was expected to recover.

Later, Johnson was charged with carrying a firearm without a license, recklessly endangering another person, and other charges connected to the robbery, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.

Fatal Robbery of Great Grandfather

In January, a Baltimore man was shot in his house. He had just returned from a winning day at Horseshoe Casino Baltimore. The assailant followed the great grandfather from the gaming venue to rob him, and the wound turned out to be fatal.

Clarence Joseph Buckner, 65, unsuccessfully struggled with the bandit. But the robber fired at least one shot at the man.

Baltimore police later confirmed the motive behind the shooting was robbery, the Baltimore Sun reported.

First-Degree Murder

In addition, in October, a man was accused of killing a winning player after they both left Pennsylvania’s Parx Casino. He had been shadowing him on the gaming floor well before their exit, news reports revealed. The alleged assailant later tailed the victim some 30 miles to his New Jersey home, where the 54-year-old was shot and later died, police said.

Jekai Reid-John, 27, of Norristown, Pa., was charged with first-degree murder. He was seen near the victim, Sree Aravapalli, while he was at Parx Casino in Bensalem, Pa., the Bucks County Courier Times, a local newspaper, reported.

Once at Aravapalli’s Plainsboro, N.J. home, Reid-John entered the house via a sliding door, police said. He allegedly shot the victim several times.

Aravapalli died a short time later. Aravapalli won about $10,000 at the casino that night.