Two poker players suspected of cheating at two local casinos
Dante Ulanday - News Moderator 
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) -- Two men who won more than $30,000 at two local casinos are facing criminal charges after allegedly cheating by marking cards, prosecutors said.
Vaagn Galustyan, 52, and Armin Martirosyan, 53, were arraigned in San Diego County Superior Court Tuesday, both facing two felony counts of conspiracy to commit a crime, San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan said in a news release Tuesday.
The defendants, and a third unidentified person, entered Pala Casino separately, taking seats at a table together to play Mississippi Stud Poker, according to the DA.
While they were playing, the casino surveillance cameras caught each man allegedly bent the corners of the high-value cards they received—Tens, Jacks, Queens, Kings and Aces. The men are seen multiple times allegedly marking cards to help them see what cards the dealer might have in front of them to assist them in deciding how to bet on the next rounds of the game, the DA said.
“This method of cheating at cards goes back hundreds of years but with modern technology, the practice can be detected and those who would scam local casinos can be brought to justice,” Stephan said. “I’m proud of my office’s relationships with tribal governments and the cooperation we continue to have with them to successfully prosecute a variety of crimes that occur on tribal lands.”
The defendants left the casino after the poker table was shut down, but they did not cash their chips. They returned five hours later in the early morning hours dressed differently, completing a partial cash-in of their winnings at two different cashiers in Pala Casino for $19,250, per the DA.
The following week, the defendants allegedly repeated the same crime playing Mississippi Stud Poker at Harrah's Casino in Valley Center, where they won $13,410, according to prosecutors.
Galustyan and Martirosyan both face up to three years and eight months in prison if convicted of all charges. A preliminary hearing is set for Jan. 15.
