It's 1995 and a nervous looking man has just won . the $100,000 jackpot at Bally's Park Casino he's the most notorious cheat of all time but the . casino staff is suspicious basically turned the gaffed machines into his own personal ATMs why isn't he more excited and why is he wearing a hearing aid he looks so young he Almost Got Away With It imagine cheating Vegas for six whole years without anyone noticing a thing this is the story of an unsuspecting nerd who did exactly that to understand how we need to , wind back to 1989 the rise of card counting and math-based gambling has led casinos to focus , on video poker slot machines and other forms of electronic gambling it's no-brainer as slot , machines earn on average from 200 to $300 per day but it poses a new problem computer nerds boasting over 100,000 digital gaming machines across the city the Nevada Gaming Control Board needs the brightest intellects on its side Ron Harris is their Chief Mastermind with rapid . developments in technology computer Specialists like Ron are Paramount Dollar by Dollar tourists feed more than $30 billion into machines that year Ron's job is to understand and prevent Foul , Play in particular on the slot machines now slot machines have become extremely popular because , they're inviting easy to play there's no skill involved and just about anyone can operate them each machine contains a small silicon chip and a microprocessor they serve as the control center . that dictates the rotation of the reels and the reels are then propelled by miniature stepper , Motors casinos are fond of this new technology because it enables them to set the odds on each . individual machine and players love them because it presents a chance to win big from seemingly small Stakes however this creates a significant challenge for the control board because they're . the ones tasked with preventing both the casinos and cheaters from manipulating the machines it's . exactly why the Board needs the brightest Minds on their team solving Advanced Computer crimes . isn't easy in the middle of 1988 Ron Harris faces a significant challenge The Gaming Control Board . has been alerted by an anonymous source about a specific kind of video poker machine they say . that the machines are rigged to avoid paying out these games in question are supplied by American , coin Enterprises a company based in Las Vegas and the machines have been distributed on a revenue sharing basis which means the venues don't have to pay for the machines because both the venue and American coin receive a percentage of the players losses it's a very strong incentive to rig the machine's pattern of play the commission's new whiz kid is tasked with investigating could the company really be cheating Vegas gamblers Harris initiates an investigation to uncover criminal , instructions in the software in the past corrupt casinos could manipulate old mechanical slot machines by avoiding high paying combinations and the players could deceive the machines , by using coins on strings wires or magnets however tampering with digital machine software , is significantly more covert unlike interfering with the machine's physical components malicious code remains invisible The Machine's motherboard controls the reals and presents the outcome to , the player the microprocessor carries out the instructions stored on two eom devices this is , precisely what a potential slot cheat would aim to alter for financial game to detect malicious code he must remove the suspect chipset from the motherboard and scrutinize its code line by line carefully comparing it to an original supplied by the manufacturer now Ron is determined to uncover . any tampering if chip has been altered he starts his hunt at a local bar where the players have been complaining that the machines never produce a win Beyond a mediocre level and after intense . analysis he finds Rogue code The Machine's rigged program prevents Royal flushies from being hit when players bet the maximum number of coins furthermore when the player is supposed , to hit the jackpot at the final moment the last card blocks the win this was a new problem one . that Ron was seeing for the first time so Harris has proofed that the machine's chipset has been t , tampered with but the real question is who did it looking for an inside man Ron approaches a lead . programmer of the company Larry vog he doesn't quite understand how their chips work and he's . met Larry before so it seems like the quickest way to get answers except Larry's behavior is a . bit strange at first he seems reluctant making up a range of bizarre reasons as to why they can't . meet just yet he agrees to meet Ron although he appears to be hiding something eventually after much persistence they meet him in a diner just out of town Town Larry's extremely nervous to the point of sweating throughout their meeting Larry vul was um a very uh scared individual he feared them he didn't want to give up the secret no more than 5 minutes in he admits that .

he ordered the code for more than 500 of the company's machines he says the company owners , forced him to do it and he claims they're not the type of people you say no to this is massive it's extremely embarrassing for the Nevada Gaming Control Board Ron and many of Vegas's casinos , shortly after it transpires that the cheating resulted in 17 million in fraud over the last 3 . years in a bid to avoid prison Larry agrees to stand witness against American coin in court now . this is key for Ron and the control board however things quickly turn sour when vul's wife starts . to receive threatening phone calls it's a serious situation and they're now being intimidated and watched on a routine basis next the unthinkable happens Larry vog is executed a Point Blank Range while working on his car outside his home instantly dead their key and only witness to this , crime is gone in an instant without Larry vuler a witness there isn't a case this is a huge turning point because Ron feels let down by the system he feels responsible but he powerless the house has . won once again facing financial problems of his own is time to get even this nerdy computer geek . is about to come up with the most ingenious and cunning crime Vegas has ever seen with experience . brains and a ton of Envy for the establishment Ron is ready to orchestrate The Perfect Crime how he does it is genius the American coin Scandal leads the Gaming Control Board to revise their , approach to slot machine regulation they craft the strategy to randomly verify the Integrity of slot machines after installation it's the best way to make sure they aren't rigged Ron Harris is , appointed to spearhead the program having seen how it was done previously he sets about building the equipment and procedure for testing machine chips an agent would conduct a surprise inspection at , various casinos where they would connect a laptop to the back of the machine extract the circuit board remove the eom device housing the software and evaluate the program to confirm it match to , the version approved by the gaming control board if the code on the chip failed to replicate . the Master Copy held on record it indicated the machine had been tampered with consequently . any machine found not to contain the authorized software would be taken out of circulation what . the control board doesn't know is that Ron has decided to pull a genius stunt he's modified the programming equipment the testers will use so that as they are testing the machine it chip would be . corrupted with his own pre-programmed cheat code but that's just the first part Ron has a far grander plan ahead Keen to see if his code has worked using the records from The Gaming Control . Board he locates one of the slot machines that have been tested the control board's new system , details exactly which casino floor and place the tested machine stands at so he positions himself at a compromised slot machine it's risky because his job title forbids him from engaging with any . machines in Vegas anyone who works at the board is really not allowed to uh play in any casino it's . part of our uh contract when we sign on with the board participating in gameplay presents a clear . conflict of interest but his burning desire to take down the house has taken over he's configured the slot machine to trigger the jackpot after a precise sequence of coins that inserted into . the machine rapidly one after the other first he inserts three coins then one then two then three , and finally four his heart is thumping out of his chest jackpot The Machine's chip recognizes the cheat code and adds $200 to the slot machine's balance that's around $500 in today's money now , he knows it works but he faces a problem as any reputable winner will know big payouts mean big attention exactly what he doesn't want frantically he tries to play the credits away remarkably he wins again overwhelmed with anxiety his goal shifts to losing this continues for a grueling 30 minutes having lost part of the accumulated balance he decides to get up and quietly walk . away the next player can have the remaining credits he's achieved his objective he just wanted . to confirm that his code had worked now he has a far bigger and far more dangerous task ahead so , far no one suspects a thing however he was known in the casinos as a Nevada control board employee he needs someone to play on his behalf this is where a close friend comes in read McNeil when . Harris asks mcneel to join him in cheating the casinos mcneel can't believe his luck feeling no . sympathy for the house he quickly agrees so the duo hit the casino floor for a test run after , locating the machine Ron disappears into the background McNeil methodically inserts the coins , into the slot machine one after the other instant success a few hours later a mcneel walks away with , today's equivalent of $119,000 in his back pocket the sweetest part nobody suspects a thing between , October of 1992 and the beginning of 1995 the pair repeat this trick over and over again this . is working out between 1992 and 1995 Ron Harris pulled off the greatest cheating Escapade in the .

history of Nevada but he's smart incredibly smart Ron makes sure that neither he nor McNeil spend , the money on frivolous items no expensive watches no fancy cars nothing but Ron is anxious he knows . there's one issue with what they've been doing every time a slot machine is corrupted with the , cheat code it leaves a trail a trail that could lead back to him he wants to develop a better way , of cheating the house one that can't lead back to him one that will provide massive payouts with no . risk at all this thinking leads him to his biggest stunt of all if you could make make um large amounts of money off it that'd be great yeah much like the lottery Kino requires players to choose , numbers on a ticket and match them with a sequence that is then drawn typically Casino players have to choose eight numbers and pay as little as a dollar there's a one in 230,000 chance of picking . all eight numbers but Ron has another cunning plan in his role at The Gaming Control Board Ron has , unrestricted access to Kino programming known as imager through diligent analysis of the software . where he learns the secrets of forecasting the wning numbers is embedded within the computer's code specifically in the code governing the random number generators for The Kino game Harris becomes , fixated on the algorithm that generates these numbers over time he concludes that the so-called . random number generator is not entirely random but operates based on an intricate mathematical , formula by cracking this formula he believes he'll be able to accurately predict the outcome of the draws using some of the last minute variables he calls his friend Reed once more now he needs him to play keyote on his behalf and Atlantic City is their target it's January 1995 and they're about , to attempt the biggest scam in Kino history the potential return $100,000 each time as they see , it the hundreds of cameras Casino staff a muscle in the control room will be none the wiser no one , should be able at any given point in time to be able to predict what the outcome is is going to be , it's the evening before the hit and Reed arrives at the Atlantic City hotel first the two two have . agreed to meet in reception but Ron isn't there he thinks nothing of it and checks into his room and hands over his passport he leaves a memo with reception so Ron knows which room he's in when , he arrives after missing his initial flight Ron turns up 6 hours later the next morning both men . prepare themselves in their hotel room Ron will remain there so he can monitor the casino's Kino results via the television in his room by entering the previous draws numbers into his computer he can predict the next draw they've pre-planned the communication Ron will transmit the numbers that , Reed mcneel should play from the hotel room via an aled hearing aid and now it's time Reed is seated , in the casino's Keno area anxiously waiting for Ron to send him the selections back in the hotel , room Ron tracks the TV screen and punches the details into his computer he passes the expected . combination to read via their secret earpiece failure despite the numbers being close they're , not right they try again 4 12 22 36 46 53 57 71 Bingo they're in the money now they just need to , collect the winnings and get the hell out of there but there's a problem once more their meticulous . planning stopped at the point of winning and now very nervous Reed McNeil is attempting to collect the $100,000 jackpot from some extremely suspicious Casino staff the teller asks . him for his ID and he provides it after what seems like forever the teller returns and explains that , collecting that amount of cash might take a while they offer to bring it up to his room so he agrees , and gives him the room number it's a fatal mistake when he gets back up to the room Ron bursts . into a blind panic Reed doesn't realize what he's just done in giving the casino staff his ID , and room number the room bookings registration the reception memo the jackpot and the pair are now , directly linked worse still the casino's security boss knows Ron next three heavy set Casino staff , appear at Reed's hotel room door they want a quiet word in a back room downstairs they say they have . some questions with no other options available he goes with them meanwhile Ron is frantically packing his bag and clearing the room upstairs he takes all of his computer equipment and makes a run for the airport when he lands in Las Vegas a few hours later staff from the Nevada gaming . commission along with the police are waiting for him the game is up because of this one simple . mistake everything is exposed the hundreds of slot machines with rigged computer code 3 years worth . of SL cheating The Kino win everything is all out in the open in June of 1996 he's given a 7-year prison sentence and entered into Nevada's black book alongside other big time Casino cheats here's . one of them in the next video please check it out,

The Nerd Who Cheated Vegas Without Being Noticed