2nd Casino Hit With Counterfeit Chip Scheme in Less Than a Month

Maryland Live! is the second casino in under two months to be struck by a counterfeit scheme.

Maryland State Police have charged a Virginia couple and are looking for two other individuals in the matter.

Police say Rosa Nguyen of Annandale, Virginia, bought counterfeit chips online and they were altered to look like Maryland Live! chips. Police say the chips were thrown into a lake, but they floated and most were recovered.

Late last month, the Borgata Casino was forced to cancel a tournament following the discovery of counterfeit chips. 

A clogged pipe at an Atlantic City, N.J., casino ultimately led to the discovery of $2.7 million in counterfeit poker chips that had been flushed down a toilet. 

Christian Lusardi of Fayetteville, North Carolina was arrested on charges including theft and rigging a public contest.

In the Maryland Live! case, Nguyen is charged with theft and conspiracy and her husband, Vuong Truong, is charged with committing a theft scheme and conspiracy.

Police say they are also seeking charges against another northern Virginia couple, who altered $1 chips from a West Virginia casino to look like $100 Maryland Live! chips.

- Nagesh Rath, Gambling911.com