Man Suspected of New York-New York Armed Robbery Remains in Las Vegas Jail

Posted on: June 12, 2020, 11:43h. 

Last updated on: June 13, 2020, 07:33h.

Steve Bittenbender Read More
Expertise: Legislation, Sports Betting, Horse Racing.

A man remained in custody Friday after he allegedly robbed the New York-New York Casino Resort in Las Vegas early Thursday morning.

New York-New York robbery
A man was arrested Wednesday after police allege he robbed a cage at the New York-New York Casino Resort on the Las Vegas Strip. (Image: Supercarwaar/Wikimedia)

According to a report from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police, a call came in from the MGM Resorts International casino on the Strip shortly after 2 a.m. PT.

Officer Larry Hadfield, a public information officer for the LVMPD, told Casino.org that the police received a report of a cage robbery, with a man taking an undisclosed amount of money.

Officers responded to the area, got with some of the local security, and when they were ATL (attempting to locate), they found that individual across the street at another hotel,” Hadfield said.

At the unnamed hotel, police arrested William R. Clark, 41, on charges of robbery executed with a deadly weapon and burglary while possessing a deadly weapon. As of Friday night, he is in the Clark County Detention Center.

According to the Clark County Detention Center web site, Clark faces a hearing Tuesday on the charges.

New York-New York Robbed Days After Reopening

The incident came less than a week after the resort was one of four MGM Strip properties that reopened on June 4. That was the date Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak set for casinos across the state to resume operations. MGM’s Las Vegas casinos shut down on March 16, a day before Sisolak ordered casinos and non-essential businesses closed because of the COVID-19 crisis.

The shutdown prompted the gaming company to furlough more than 60,000 workers.

Besides New York-New York, MGM, which owns and operates more Strip casinos than any other company, also opened the MGM Grand, Bellagio, and The Signature casinos on June 4. In an announcement, the company said it would open additional Vegas properties as demand grew.

On Thursday, the company opened the Excalibur Hotel and Casino. The Luxor will open on June 25, with the ARIA, Mandalay Bay, and Four Seasons opening on July 1.

Feds Nab Man Wanted for 2011 Rio Heist

Wednesday’s robbery ended like most attempts to forcibly take money from a casino. Fortunately, no one was injured in the most recent attempt.

While most get apprehended either at the casino or a short time later, some do end up making a getaway. While Carter’s getaway lasted less than a couple hours, one man’s escape from the law lasted nearly a decade.

Last month, federal authorities tracked down a man wanted for armed robbery in a nine-year-old case. On May 9, Steven Gao was arrested by members of the FBI Los Angeles Fugitive Task Force.

Gao is accused of stealing more than $30,000 in chips from the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino on Feb. 24, 2011. He’s accused of using a .38 revolver in the heist and, according to the 2011 report, forcing a cab driver to drive away.

He eventually made it to Tijuana, where authorities said he then flew to China. The FBI announcement did not say where Gao, 64, was apprehended.

He’s currently detained at the Los Angeles County Jail without bail as federal authorities seek to extradite Gao to Las Vegas. He has a hearing scheduled in Los Angeles on Monday.

The robbery charges are state crimes, but he also faces a federal charge of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.