Two Queens men pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges they allegedly developed a card sharp scheme that took a Connecticut casino for about $200,000.
Leonard Hu and Hung Leung allegedly paid off a Mohegan Sun mini-baccarat dealer in Norwich, Conn. to help them carry out the conspiracy, cops said.
For $1,000-a-night, Jian Ng, an inside man who worked the casino's tables, marked the 7, 8, and 9 cards by bending them with his thumb, according to police.
Hu and Leung would then have an edge on each hand over the house, cops said.
The men pleaded not guilty Tuesday to felony casino cheating and larceny charges in New London Superior Court in Conn. They posted bail and remain free, pending a trial or plea.
Police say that the seeds of the sting were sewn on a fall night a year ago when Hu and Ng met at the nearby Foxwoods Resort Casino.
Hu asked Ng to participate in the hustle and the crooked dealer agreed, according to authorities.
Then on Feb. 11 and in the early morning hours of Feb. 12, another dealer, Bong Louie, was also allegedly drafted into the scheme. He subtly marked the cards prior to the end of his shift, cops said.
Hu and Leung then approached the table and started playing, with no one the wiser that the deck had been stacked in their favor.
Hu made off with $101,600 and Leung finished with a cool $52,000, a state police arrest warrant affidavit says.
But the winnings were apparently not enough, as the greedy and enboldened Queens duo returned to the casino a week later and repeated the hustle - this time with Ng marking the cards.
On that second trip, Hu took in more than $25,000 and Leung, $6,100, cops said.
Ng and Louie were also arrested and charged with casino cheating and larceny and were released on bail. Their lawyers didn't return phone messages Tuesday.
No one answered the phone at Hu and Leung's Queens homes, and Mohegan Sun declined comment.
Leonard Hu and Hung Leung allegedly paid off a Mohegan Sun mini-baccarat dealer in Norwich, Conn. to help them carry out the conspiracy, cops said.
For $1,000-a-night, Jian Ng, an inside man who worked the casino's tables, marked the 7, 8, and 9 cards by bending them with his thumb, according to police.
Hu and Leung would then have an edge on each hand over the house, cops said.
The men pleaded not guilty Tuesday to felony casino cheating and larceny charges in New London Superior Court in Conn. They posted bail and remain free, pending a trial or plea.
Police say that the seeds of the sting were sewn on a fall night a year ago when Hu and Ng met at the nearby Foxwoods Resort Casino.
Hu asked Ng to participate in the hustle and the crooked dealer agreed, according to authorities.
Then on Feb. 11 and in the early morning hours of Feb. 12, another dealer, Bong Louie, was also allegedly drafted into the scheme. He subtly marked the cards prior to the end of his shift, cops said.
Hu and Leung then approached the table and started playing, with no one the wiser that the deck had been stacked in their favor.
Hu made off with $101,600 and Leung finished with a cool $52,000, a state police arrest warrant affidavit says.
But the winnings were apparently not enough, as the greedy and enboldened Queens duo returned to the casino a week later and repeated the hustle - this time with Ng marking the cards.
On that second trip, Hu took in more than $25,000 and Leung, $6,100, cops said.
Ng and Louie were also arrested and charged with casino cheating and larceny and were released on bail. Their lawyers didn't return phone messages Tuesday.
No one answered the phone at Hu and Leung's Queens homes, and Mohegan Sun declined comment.