Venetian Restaurant Ex-Manager Allegedly Stole $14K, Gambled Much of it Away

Posted on: July 7, 2022, 06:28h. 

Last updated on: July 20, 2022, 02:50h.

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

A former manager of the Sugarcane Raw Bar and Grill faces an embezzlement charge in local court for allegedly stealing over $14,000. The eatery is located in The Venetian Hotel and Casino, situated on the Las Vegas Strip.

The Venetian Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas
The Venetian Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, pictured above. A restaurant at the casino was the site of an embezzlement by a manager, police said. (Image: TripAdvisor)

The thefts only became public knowledge this week. The suspect, Jessica Soriano, was apprehended last month when she was stopped for a motor vehicle investigation.

A routine records check showed a warrant was issued for her arrest in 2019, KLAS, a local TV station reported.

The thefts date back to December 2018 and January 2019. Much of the money was gambled away by Soriano. It was part of her effort to somehow repay the initial missing money, KLAS said.

Following her arrest on June 26, Soriano was taken to the Clark County Detention Center. She was released on her own recognizance, KLAS said. The case will be heard in local court.

Police explained Soriano was responsible for cash deposits on her restaurant shift. The stolen money was supposed to be part of three separate cash drops, police said.

Tried to Win Money Back

The first theft was used for the cost of Soriano’s sister’s medication, police believe. The rest of the money was spent on gambling so Soriano could repay the money she had stolen initially, police said.

Jessica Soriano, in a mug shot
Jessica Soriano, in a mug shot, pictured above. She is a former manager of the Sugarcane Raw Bar and Grill, and allegedly stole over $14,000 from the eatery located in The Venetian Hotel and Casino. (Image: LVMPD)

But the restaurant never got repaid, police add. It appears much of the loot was lost while she was gambling.

In an unrelated case, an Arizona bookkeeper was indicted this year for allegedly embezzling over $5.3 million from two local businesses for which she worked, and from a homeowner’s association in Mexico.

She spent most of the ill-gotten money at Tucson-area casinos, local authorities revealed in March.

Helen Marie Dahlstrom of Tucson, Ariz. was charged with fraudulent schemes and artifices, theft, computer tampering, forgery, and money laundering, according to a statement released by Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich.

Seven Year Plot

Dahlstrom stole the money over a seven-year span starting in 2013, largely by writing checks made out to cash, Brnovich said in a statement.

Dahlstrom allegedly stole most of the money from business accounts on which she had access. Authorities identified her impacted employers as Lauderbach Builders Supply and L&L Manufactured Components. Both are construction-related companies in Tucson. She was their bookkeeper.

Dahlstrom also was a treasurer for a Rocky Point, Mexico-based homeowner’s association. The association is called Cholla Bay HOA. It is known in Spanish as Asociacion De Regularizacion De Vecinos De La Cholla. She stole money from the Cholla Bay HOA, Brnovich said, then allegedly forged the Cholla Bay HOA’s financial statements.