Police: Strip guest used bad check to gamble with $865K

Police say a guest at a Strip casino used a fraudulent check to receive $865,000 in chips, which he then lost on table games.

Dharma Nadendla, 41, of North Carolina, faces felony charges of theft of $100,000 or greater, burglary of a business and forgery, according to a Metropolitan Police Department arrest report.

Police say Nadendla, a guest at Aria, presented a credit union check for $380,000 at a cashier cage Tuesday to receive a $500,000 marker. He then asked his host for an additional $365,000. After losing both markers, he returned to his room and called his host to get another marker, the report said.

During this time, a cashier cage employee noticed the top number on the check did not match the bottom number. Calls to the North Carolina bank in question confirmed that the check was fraudulent, the report said. The bank informed the casino the original value of the check was for $174.80.

The casino called police and also told Nadendla that his marker would be ready when he returned to the floor. Police detained him as he headed toward the elevator.

Nadendla, who posted bond, is scheduled for a status check hearing Aug. 28 in Las Vegas Justice Court.

Contact Tony Garcia at tgarcia@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0307. Follow @TonyGLVNews on X.