Kelso man arrested after thousands in chips stolen from ilani Casino Resort

RIDGEFIELD, Wash. - A Kelso, Washington man who is banned from a casino in southwest Washington is accused of stealing $12,500 in chips after a casino break-in Tuesday.

Police said a man entered the ilani Casino Resort Tuesday while disguised in a gray wig and construction vest, The Columbian reported.

Clark Regional Emergency Services Agency advised authorities at about 7:50 a.m. that a man was in the casino’s high limits area using a drill to break into the chips table, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

The man, thought to be the suspect in disguise, ran when security approached him, the affidavit says. A responding Clark County sheriff’s deputy advised he was chasing the man near a gas station and he was detained shortly after, according to the affidavit.

Officers found a grinder and extra grinding wheels, a construction vest and 25 $500 chips in his possession, court documents said. A gray wig was found nearby, the affidavit says.

Court records show police used a stun gun on him before his arrest.

The 25-year-old appeared Wednesday in Clark County Superior Court on suspicion of burglary and theft. Judge Emily Sheldrick set the man's bail at $15,000. It wasn’t immediately known if he has a lawyer.

He was trespassed from ilani on Dec. 15, but he has been back to the casino at least twice, court documents said.