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Read Full BioPolice arrested Seth Maybee, a resident of South Lake Tahoe, California, after the 37-year-old called in a bomb threat against Harrah’s Casino in Stateline, Nevada.
The casino received a call on Monday evening with the caller stating, “Yeah, I just lost over $20,000 at your stupid casino, and I am going to destroy it now. I am going to bomb it. This is a bomb threat.”
Douglas County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO) deputies arrived at the casino and traced the call back to Maybee’s address in South Lake Tahoe. He was subsequently arrested by the South Lake Tahoe Police Department at his residence around 1:40 am.
In a statement, police said he has been charged with making a bomb threat and making terroristic threats. He was booked into the El Dorado County Jail and will be extradited to Douglas County, Nevada, to face charges.
It is unclear if Maybee actually lost $20,000 gambling at the casino.
Threats Taken Seriously After Past Incidents
Douglas County Sheriff Dan Coverley said, “I want to thank Harrah’s Casino for their quick reporting of this incident and the South Lake Tahoe Police Department for their assistance in the arrest of Maybee.”
Coverley noted that his office takes all threats seriously following past incidents. He added, “Due to the history of the Harvey’s bombing in the early 1980s, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and Stateline casinos take these threats very seriously. Fortunately, we were able to make an arrest before anything happened.”
In August 1980, a car bomb was planted at Harvey’s Resort Hotel in Stateline. The bomber, later identified as John Birges, a Hungarian-born former casino owner, demanded a $3 million ransom to disarm the bomb.
Bomb disposal experts from multiple agencies attempted to neutralize it, but in doing so, detonated the device. While no individuals were killed, several were injured, and the blast did extensive damage to the hotel and casino.
More recently, a man was arrested after calling in a threat to Sunset Station Hotel and Casino in Henderson, Nevada, over a memorial honoring slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Thomas “TJ” Fedikovich called the casino, stating he would “take out” the casino’s CEO and destroy the memorial if they did not remove it. He was charged with one felony count of coercion with physical force or immediate threat of physical force and misdemeanor harassment.
Disgruntled Gamblers Prone to Lash Out
If Maybee genuinely did lose $20,000 at the casino, then he is not alone in becoming disgruntled after suffering gambling losses. There have been several cases of sports bettors becoming abusive after losing money.
Last year, an overseas bettor was identified as the source of threats against Houston Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. The MLB player said the angry gambler had threatened to “find my kids and murder them” following a losing bet on the Astros to beat the Cincinnati Reds.
The abuser later admitted and apologized for the threats, claiming he was intoxicated at the time.
Sports stars are frequently exposed to abuse from frustrated gamblers. A study last year found that a third of all college basketball players have been subjected to betting-related abuse.
