Mutuel Clerk Helps Himself

[upthecreek]

http://news10.com/2016/08/19/nyra-worker-charged-with-being-short-11700-making-bets-with-it/

[Donttellmeshowme]

He be dumb.

[EMD4ME]

What an idiot. If you're gonna do that, I could maybe (not really but making a point) see a teller punching $20,000 on Songbird to place or something. Make a $1000 and keep it.

Still, one should never steal or borrow LIKE THAT. BAD!

[zico20]

What an idiot. If you're gonna do that, I could maybe (not really but making a point) see a teller punching $20,000 on Songbird to place or something. Make a $1000 and keep it.

Still, one should never steal or borrow LIKE THAT. BAD!

Do that once a week and you can supplement your income very nicely. :D

[classhandicapper]

He lost 11.7k?

How much did he bet, 25k-30k?

If that's his typical daily handle, NYRA's handle might be down for the rest of the meet. :lol:

Over a certain amount I think it becomes a more serious crime. What a fool.

[no breathalyzer]

:lol: all you gotta do is look at that mug shot and its will become obvious the guy is not too sharp.

[EMD4ME]

He lost 11.7k?

How much did he bet, 25k-30k?

If that's his typical daily handle, NYRA's handle might be down for the rest of the meet. :lol:

Over a certain amount I think it becomes a more serious crime. What a fool.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Also,

He should've asked for rebates :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Tor Ekman]

:lol: all you gotta do is look at that mug shot and its will become obvious the guy is not too sharp.
If the mullet wasn't the tip off, his narrow in-bred looking eyes should've been

[Secondbest]

True story. At the nycotb a teller bet a few thousand to show at Yonkers on an even money horse. Ran out. Kept betting to recoup ended up losing 35,000.The manager who should have picked it up was fired but was only suspended because he was hooked up with politicians in Albany.Teller was canned and threatened with jail unless he made some sort of restitution.

[EMD4ME]

True story. At the nycotb a teller bet a few thousand to show at Yonkers on an even money horse. Ran out. Kept betting to recoup ended up losing 35,000.The manager who should have picked it up was fired but was only suspended because he was hooked up with politicians in Albany.Teller was canned and threatened with jail unless he made some sort of restitution.

You have to be a true generate idiot to bet that kind of money OR ANY money on a Yonkers race. WOW.

I believe it. Having spent time in NYC OTBS (hated every second of them) I believe it all :lol:

[tucker6]

If the mullet wasn't the tip off, his narrow in-bred looking eyes should've been
Those are meth eyes

[Tom]

Mutuel Clerk Helps Himself


Doesn't Mutuel Clerk post here? :eek:

[classhandicapper]

I believe it. Having spent time in NYC OTBS (hated every second of them) I believe it all :lol:

In theory they shouldn't have been betting at all. There were "spotters" circulating in the branches "under cover" that were supposed to turn in any clerks that were betting. I knew a guy that used to tell customers with a minute left to post that he'd put in their bets as soon as he called in his own. :rolleyes:

[Secondbest]

Anytime a stranger showed up the tellers would ask whose he, you know him, ok everybody be careful.
On payday the handle had a nice increase. :D

[mountainman]

Some of those guys supplement nicely by lending out of the box. Back in my degenerate days, I could go to the races broke and bet all day with a clerk or two who could cover or handle the load. They knew I was good for it, and they were in for a big tip if I got hot. Lots of tellers are real operators.

And they are world champs at NOT minding their own business. I went on a 10 or 11 race winning streak with spot plays at Mahoning last xmas and eventually realized that the upstairs clerks knew which horse I had wagered on DOWNSTAIRS.

I don't think they considered me invincible-or even much respected me- they are just incredibly nosey by nature.

[JustRalph]

Vito Vivona ?

You can't make this shit up.........

I had to google that name

http://www.nytimes.com/1995/09/02/nyregion/us-contends-major-festival-is-run-by-mob.html

I'm guessing no background check?

Or maybe a state employee?

http://state-employees.findthedata.com/d/a/Vito-Vivona

[EMD4ME]

Vito Vivona ?

You can't make this shit up.........

I had to google that name

http://www.nytimes.com/1995/09/02/nyregion/us-contends-major-festival-is-run-by-mob.html

I'm guessing no background check?

Or maybe a state employee?

http://state-employees.findthedata.com/d/a/Vito-Vivona


WOW......just WOW. Good job Ralph.... I wonder when he started with NYRA. Maybe it was before his indictment?

[thaskalos]

If the mutuel tellers are prohibited from betting, then the mutuel pools will plummet by at least 30%...in the Chicago-area, at least. When I visit the windows at my local OTBs...I usually have to wait patiently for the teller to make his OWN bets...before I call out my own.

[salty]

When I worked at cvs in high school and college people got caught doing stupid things on the registers twice.

Everybody was put on drawer probation where we had to go back and watch the manager count the drawers for two weeks and sign that I witnessed the counting, which I never understood the point of. It happened to me 3 times over the course of a year. Everyday I would ask the manager, isn't it strange that every time this happens I'm exactly $20 short or exactly $10 short? Finally they catch this girl after she had swiped up over $3,000 on gift cards, she would grab a gift card and swipe it on a register if it was left signed on with nobody there.

Another time a pharmacist had the great Idea to do fake returns with blood pressure monitors, where he would take one off the shelf and refund the cost onto a cvs gift card. Aparently he stole a lot of money because I saw him being taken out in handcuffs when I walked into work one day. And when you think about that one the guy threw away an entire college education because who will hire a convicted thief to work in their pharmacy?

Basically when people see an easy way to manipulate a system and make money even while already being at work making money they do it. I'm surprised this doesn't happen more often. Greed happens.

[snickster]

I was a mutual clerk at the Fair Grounds in the 1970 - 1980's. This happened all of the time. There were a few known gamblers working the windows as mutual clerks who would bet out the box all the time. Sometimes they would go for 10K or more on a 1/5 favorite and lose. They did not go straight to jail but would not be allowed to return to work until they paid back whatever they were short out the box if it was in the thousand of dollar range. If they couldn't or wouldn't pay it back they got fired but I don' think they had charges pressed against them. The track just took it as a loss and moved on.

[burnsy]

If the mullet wasn't the tip off, his narrow in-bred looking eyes should've been


NYRA=Equal Opportunity Employer. Even Joe Dirt (David Spade) needs to work for a living. He's still looking for his parents.

[rrpic6]

Some of those guys supplement nicely by lending out of the box. Back in my degenerate days, I could go to the races broke and bet all day with a clerk or two who could cover or handle the load. They knew I was good for it, and they were in for a big tip if I got hot. Lots of tellers are real operators.

And they are world champs at NOT minding their own business. I went on a 10 or 11 race winning streak with spot plays at Mahoning last xmas and eventually realized that the upstairs clerks knew which horse I had wagered on DOWNSTAIRS.

I don't think they considered me invincible-or even much respected me- they are just incredibly nosey by nature.

Mark, you are respected, however I doubt this particular story. Only crazy, large wagers are noticed by these tellers (5K to win on a 1st timer by a 1% Trainer that ended up last). Most are trying to decipher the mumblings of Senior Citizens or answering questions like "what is a trifecta" to remember what you bet.

RR

[chenoa]

If your the teller why not throw $20,000 to show on some harness horse at the Meadowlands then leave $200 on it and pull the rest out as the starting gate rolls, by then everyone will have put a thousand or two on other horses and maybe you can pick up $500-$1000 on your horse, providing he hits the board.



One time shot as you the teller will be monitored for the rest of your employment, if your still around after providing your excuse for the amount that is. :D

[Parkview_Pirate]

I guess Vino's transgression was "hidden" within the larger handle at NYRA.

I've read about at smaller tracks when the desperation kicks in and show prices start paying outlandishly when a teller "misses" a sure thing...and then tries to get his stake back....

[chenoa]

I guess Vino's transgression was "hidden" within the larger handle at NYRA.

I've read about at smaller tracks when the desperation kicks in and show prices start paying outlandishly when a teller "misses" a sure thing...and then tries to get his stake back....

I never considered that the bridge jumper at the tiny dumpy racino could actually be the "TELLER". :rolleyes:

You know what happens when you play with fire.............. :lol: :lol:

[stlseeeek]

So you cannot bet as a teller in NY? If so, wow, what a terrible Union, if they belong to one.

I'm not exactly sure of rules in Illinois, but i do know the tellers bet, no one cares, and the rule was, that what ever they are short, they are supposed to make up, before they can work again. But i know guys who bet, lose a G, and worked 2 days later, still owing, and hit for about 5-6oo, and then pay the $400 out of their pay check or borrow it.

Curious what the exact rules in the jurisdictions are:

[dilanesp]

So you cannot bet as a teller in NY? If so, wow, what a terrible Union, if they belong to one.

I'm not exactly sure of rules in Illinois, but i do know the tellers bet, no one cares, and the rule was, that what ever they are short, they are supposed to make up, before they can work again. But i know guys who bet, lose a G, and worked 2 days later, still owing, and hit for about 5-6oo, and then pay the $400 out of their pay check or borrow it.

Curious what the exact rules in the jurisdictions are:

Idk, but isn't it obvious what the rule SHOULD be? Teller can bet, but only with his or her own money. How is this so hard?

[classhandicapper]

Idk, but isn't it obvious what the rule SHOULD be? Teller can bet, but only with his or her own money. How is this so hard?

I don't know what the rules are at NYRA or any of the remaining OTBs, but you were NOT allowed to bet at NYCOTB. Like I said earlier, they had under cover spotters looking for clerk gamblers. Of course, you were not allowed to accept tips either but no one paid attention to that rule either. :lol:

Most of those that bet at least occasionally (I'd guess around 75% of all NYCOTB clerks) used to play with their own money. Occasionally someone would get busted for playing out of their box. Unless the loss was large, they would usually get away with a slap on the wrist. It was close to impossible to enforce given that the clerks were often also putting in bets for the managers. :lol:

[mountainman]

Mark, you are respected, however I doubt this particular story. Only crazy, large wagers are noticed by these tellers (5K to win on a 1st timer by a 1% Trainer that ended up last). Most are trying to decipher the mumblings of Senior Citizens or answering questions like "what is a trifecta" to remember what you bet.

RR

People are nosey. And word gets around. And word getting around had nothing to do with respect-I was on a roll, and two of your tellers got extremely inquisitive. And somehow communicated from upstairs to downstairs.

And I'm well aware that most Mahoning tellers don't know a horse from Arnold Ziffel. But they know who's cashing, and are foolish enough to assume those same people will ALWAYS win.

In fact, far from respecting me as a handicapper, the most inquisitive teller insisted that I must have "inside" info.

By the way, when I lost a few bets, the curiosity died rather quickly.

I suppose I might have misheard or misinterpreted the remark that established my premise-but I don't think so, Ron.

And I was there on the day of the bet you allude to. It was blatant, ill-conceived pool manipulation of the worst order. Reprehensible cowboy crap.

[dansan]

what ever happen to 1 for them 2 for me, 2 for them 3 for me lol

[maddog42]

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/178472/nyra-fined-3-million-two-officials-four-tellers-indicted


"NYRA managers, prosecutors said, ignored widespread corruption among the ranks of its tellers. To date, 24 individuals have been charged with crimes in connection with various scams, including money laundering, tax fraud to tapping into their NYRA cash drawers to run lucrative loan-sharking operations. NYRA officials for years have known, prosecutors said, that tellers were shorting their cash boxes as part of scheme to avoid income taxes; prosecutors said the schemes resulted in $19 million in unreported income since 1980."

This happened a long time ago, but I doubt they have cleaned up that much.

[Fred]

fuggedaboutit

[EMD4ME]

Most NYRA tellers I know are genuinely nice people. Feel like they are extended cousins in a weird way as I know them forever. Of course with any pack, you'll have some rogue players. overall good group though.

[OTM Al]

Vito Vivona ?

You can't make this shit up.........

I had to google that name

http://www.nytimes.com/1995/09/02/nyregion/us-contends-major-festival-is-run-by-mob.html

I'm guessing no background check?

Or maybe a state employee?

http://state-employees.findthedata.com/d/a/Vito-Vivona

Either not convicted or not the same guy. Either that or the temp company they used screwed up big time. I've had to go through the temp process the last couple years for NYRA when I worked at the Belmont Stakes and a couple times that was even without pay for what I did. I can assure you they did a background check on me even though I was no where near the money. I also know that the process the tellers have to go through is far more involved including fingerprinting.

[chiguy]

I have been a weekend mutuel clerk in Cali for 25 years. Good second job where you get to meet interesting (to say the least!) people. I have worked all the major tracks and many of the OTB's. Overall I would say 90% of clerks also bet. I will say it is rare to see a clerk holding up a customer to make their own bets. I have seen it a couple of times over the 25 years. It is also very rare for a clerk to be betting huge sums out of their box. This does not end well when it does happen. Just like any other industry where there are large sums of cash changing hands you will always have those few that try to work the system but I have to say that at the end of the day you have to balance and if you are the type of person willing to bet a few grand on a favorite to show with somebody else's money, you are not going to be long for this job.

[thespaah]

http://news10.com/2016/08/19/nyra-worker-charged-with-being-short-11700-making-bets-with-it/
Was in upstate NY when this broke. Saw the newscast. Could not believe my ears. So I rolled back the DVR and watched it again....
Idiot.....
My guess is he's been betting out of his till for some time.
He was probably getting tips from various sources. This time the info did not pan out.

[thespaah]

True story. At the nycotb a teller bet a few thousand to show at Yonkers on an even money horse. Ran out. Kept betting to recoup ended up losing 35,000.The manager who should have picked it up was fired but was only suspended because he was hooked up with politicians in Albany.Teller was canned and threatened with jail unless he made some sort of restitution.
And now there is a fine example why NYC OTB is the only bookmaking joint that took a 5% rake( guaranteed money) ever go out of business...

[Track Collector]

Nosy teller problems go away when one uses the self-service wagering terminals (except for the one time you need to cash out). :)

I don't see any problem with tellers betting at their own windows as long as they use their own money and do not prevent a customer from getting his/her own bets in. Betting with drawer money is obviously stealing and punishment should significant enough to discourage those who might consider doing it, e.g. immediate firing AND filing of criminal charges upon evidence of the illegal behavior.