Arizona Casino Pays Only $4G to Winner Who Hit $50G on Slot Machine
A casino in Arizona, United States is stuck in a dispute with a player who claims he hit a USD$50,000 jackpot on a slot machine but only received USD$4,000.
Ryan Sherry said he landed three red double 7’s on a slot machine at Talking Stick Resort and Casino, Scottsdale in April this year. The winning combination was supposed to yield the USD$50,000 jackpot.
“I jumped up, I was so excited!” said the man.
However, the slot machine only paid out USD$4,000 when he cashed out. The casino manager told him the payout was correct.
Taking His Case to the Tribal Government
Sherry then approached the tribal government with a letter and a photo of the combination on the slot machine. An investigator got back to him and said one of the light bulbs of the machine was out, making an orange “7” appear to be red.
The 47-year-old was not happy with the result of the investigation. “That doesn’t seem right. If it’s showing one thing, the reason why you have pictures up here is to give you a snapshot of what you’re getting close to, or what you should be paid out. If it’s something different, the machine is not actually working properly,” Sherry said.
He was also informed by tribal gaming officials at Salt River Prima-Maricopa Indian Community that the slot machine had paid out correctly. The gaming officials agreed to take Sherry’s case to tribal court but were not sure if that would resolve the dispute. The rules vary depending on the state, county court or tribe.
After fighting for what he believes he is owed for six months, Sherry revealed he wouldn’t revisit Talking Stick.
“Hopefully this does not happen to you, but the only one way you can actually guarantee that this is not going to happen to you is don’t go to the casino,” said the man.