- Gratis Woolen Jr. faces 14 felonies for attempting to cash in counterfeit chips at Las Vegas casinos.
- Woolen and another woman presented counterfeit chips at multiple gaming establishments.
- Police responded to a disturbance at a motel involving Woolen on April 10, where they discovered warrants for his arrest.
LAS VEGAS – Las Vegas police arrested a 54-year-old man for cashing in counterfeit chips across multiple casinos. He faces 14 felony charges, including burglary and possession of unlawful instruments, for attempting to use counterfeit gambling chips across many Las Vegas casinos according to court documents.
The man, Gratis Woolen Jr., allegedly exchanged counterfeit chips for several hundred dollars at the Cosmopolitan cashier back in January. The chips were off, but investigators and court documents didn’t detail if Woolen created the chips himself or if he received them from someone else.
“Some of the Golden Gates stickers were peeling, which revealed a solid black face underneath the sticker,” an investigator said. “The chips were easily identified as counterfeit, as legitimate chips are a solid piece of ceramic without external decorations, such as stickers and paint.”
Potential Bonnie And Clyde Situation With Unnamed Woman
Court documents show that Woolen wasn’t working alone, as the Harrah’s Las Vegas Hotel and Casino reported a woman using counterfeit gaming chips at their casino in Jan. 2023. The woman’s name I redacted in court documents, but both criminals are accused of passing counterfeit chips as real money across several Las Vegas gambling locations.
Police made the arrest of Woolen on April 10 after responding to a disturbance at a motel on Las Vegas Boulevard involving Woolen. Once speaking with him, they found warrants for his arrest and put him in handcuffs.
Woolen was released on bail for $1,000 with electronic monitoring. His Nevada gambling trial is set for Thursday.