A geriatric foursome ran a quick and nominally profitable cheating scheme while playing poker at Canterbury Park one night last summer, according to charges.
One of the four out-of-staters was hunted down and jailed Wednesday, while the whereabouts of the others are unknown.
All four have rap sheets with convictions for cheating while gambling in other states spanning many years.
Although the cheating at Canterbury netted the four only a little over $200 during the 45 or so minutes at the card room in Shakopee on July 4, 2013, a Canterbury spokesman said that vigorously pursuing this nefarious activity is vital to the business' credibility.
"Integrity is important," Jeff Maday said Thursday. "It's important if you are another one of the players. You want to know that the game is legit."
Charged with felonies and being held in the Scott County jail in lieu of $50,000 bail is Duane L. Racle, 75, of Lake City, Fla. Also charged are James P. Minehan, 75, of Tamarac, Fla.; Wildred Sanchez, 74, of Pembroke, Fla.; and Nicholas R. Crowder, 77, of Ferndale, Mich.
According to the charges:
Three of the men sat at a three-card poker table, and while one of them distracted the dealer, the other two, seated next to each other, palmed cards and swapped them under the table.
