Mississippi illusionist sentenced to decade in Iowa prison after years of cheating casinos

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Mississippi illusionist sentenced to decade in Iowa prison after years of cheating casinos. Mugshot of Shaun Joseph Benward

A self-proclaimed illusionist from Mississippi, who spent years working on line casino flooring below false names, together with the alias “Shaun Mistery,” will now spend the following decade behind bars.

On Tuesday (February 10), Choose Carl Petersen ordered 38-year-old Shaun Joseph Benward to serve concurrent jail phrases that add as much as 10 years. The Lyon County sentence comes with credit score for almost one yr he has already spent in custody whereas ready for the case to wrap up.

A jury discovered Benward responsible in November 2025 on a sequence of felony gaming charges tied to exercise at Grand Falls On line casino in Larchwood. Prosecutors stated the case centered on a calculated effort to use on line casino procedures for private acquire.

He manipulated on line casino workers to safe over $10,000 in improper payouts and averted IRS reporting necessities by breaking apart over $12,000 in transactions, altering his outfit a number of instances, and utilizing totally different tellers to remain undetected. Benward has been arrested for related scams all through the nation.

Iowa Division of Public Security

According to the Iowa Division of Public Security, jurors convicted him of “5 counts of Cash Laundering, 5 counts of Dishonest at Playing Video games, and one rely of Conspiracy to Commit a Felony.”

State investigators started digging into Benward’s actions after brokers noticed him dishonest on the Larchwood on line casino in December 2018. What they uncovered, officers stated, was a deliberate effort to outmaneuver each on line casino workers and federal reporting guidelines.

“He manipulated on line casino workers to safe over $10,000 in improper payouts and averted IRS reporting necessities by breaking apart over $12,000 in transactions, altering his outfit a number of instances, and utilizing totally different tellers to remain undetected,” the division said in its press launch.

Mississippi self-proclaimed illusionist had historical past of on line casino bans and allegations

The Iowa conviction didn’t mark Benward’s first conflict with playing regulators. Information from different states paint an image of comparable conduct stretching again greater than a decade.

Shaun Joseph Benward stands on an illuminated outdoor promenade at night in front of Bally’s Las Vegas, with Giordano’s and Wahlburgers signs glowing in the background. — Shaun Joseph Benward poses exterior Bally’s Las Vegas. Credit score: Instagram/mistery228228

In October 2015, the Pennsylvania Gaming Management Board positioned him on its involuntary exclusion checklist after figuring out that he and one other particular person had carried out a dishonest scheme. That very same month, he pleaded responsible to disorderly conduct in Monroe County, Pennsylvania.

Missouri regulators later compiled their very own findings. A 2019 resolution from the Missouri Gaming Fee particulars incidents at a number of Kansas Metropolis-area casinos. Surveillance footage on the Isle of Capri On line casino Kansas Metropolis allegedly confirmed Benward altering his wager after the end result of a sport was already recognized. In one other episode, investigators concluded he pulled a $500 chip off the desk whereas a cashier was distracted, then walked away with $2,750 in money regardless of presenting solely $2,250 in chips.

These incidents led to his removing from a number of properties, together with Lumière Place, Isle of Capri places, Harrah’s North Kansas Metropolis, and a number of other Boyd Gaming casinos. In the end, Missouri regulators completely barred him from all riverboat gaming amenities within the state.

After the 2018 incident in Iowa, Benward remained out of custody for a number of years. Authorities arrested him in Mississippi in April 2025 on excellent warrants tied to the Iowa case.

The Iowa Division of Public Security stated the investigation showcases the work of the Division of Legal Investigation’s Particular Enforcement Operations Bureau, calling it “the first felony investigative and enforcement company for the Iowa gaming business.”

Featured picture: Iowa Division of Public Security

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