Free The Battle for Las Vegas: The Law vs. The Mob by Dennis Griffin

organized-crime strike force in Southern California and Nevada from 1970 to 1975, knew that this conduct, if true, had to be confronted and rectified. Crane complained to Justice Department officials in Washington and an inspection team was sent to Las Vegas to find out what was going on. After a couple of weeks the inspectors left, having supposedly chastised the offending agents. Crane was satisfied—until he began receiving word that the inspection team itself had taken advantage of the available comps! He heard reports that the investigators had enjoyed their stay and left without accomplishing anything; meanwhile, the agents assigned locally were continuing to take advantage of casino largesse. An Internal Revenue Service agent Crane trusted confirmed the allegations. Crane again complained to Washington, but when he left government service in 1975, the problems in Las Vegas continued unchecked.
    Jack Keith, agent in charge of the Vegas office from 1974 until 1977, discussed the situation with a Los Angeles Times reporter after his retirement. “The precedent was set by one of the first agents in charge in Las Vegas. When he ate at a casino, he never even signed the check. He just got up and left.”
    Keith offered an explanation of why things got out of hand. “The town was a cesspool. The atmosphere permeated everything. The old-timers were part of it and didn’t even know it. No man should have been allowed to stay in that town for more than three years. Some of the agents had been there for ten or fifteen years. I told them there was no such thing as a free lunch and that some day they’d have to pay for it.”
    But allegations of taking a few meals or seeing some free shows weren’t the end of it. Things got worse. When the Dunes and later the Aladdin were wiretapped, the men being taped were content to discuss golf, the weather, and women. Some of the agents working the taps believed that the lack of productivity was due to leaks originating from other agents. Similar to the situation the police found themselves in, other FBI field offices became reluctant to share information with their Vegas colleagues.
    Another complaint to Washington resulted in yet another inspection team being sent to Sin City, in June 1977. This time the investigators weren’t compromised. Within a few months, a dozen local agents were censured or reassigned, or opted for early retirement. This housecleaning set the stage for the success of the battles yet to be waged.
    Working for “The Man”
    What was it like to work for Allen Glick’s Argent Corporation when it controlled the Stardust and other casinos? One woman who was in a unique position to know shared her experiences in a 2004 interview. To help protect her privacy, I refer to her as “Connie.”
    Connie arrived in Las Vegas in August 1969. Within a couple of weeks, the 23-year-old had gotten her first casino job in the payroll department of the Thunderbird Hotel & Casino. She was later transferred to the accounting department, where she made the arrangements for guests who were visiting the hotel on room, food, and beverage comps and handled casino credit for all the junkets. This gave her an opportunity to learn how casinos operated from marketing and customer-service standpoints and to work with some of the best professionals in the field. In 1972, Connie went to work for Circus Circus, adding to her knowledge of the casino business and customer service. In 1976, she accepted a position in the accounting department of Argent’s corporate office, located in the Stardust. This turned out to be a turning point in her casino career.
    “In those days Las Vegas was a warm friendly escape for fun and relaxation, a place that catered to your every whim. Customer service was the buzz phrase then. The casinos didn’t care about the bottom line in the areas of food, beverage, or rooms. It was the numbers from the gaming operations that counted,” Connie recalled.
    “It was