Tape 'showed roulette trick by gambler'

A ROULETTE gambler used a sleight of hand that 'would have done Paul Daniels proud' and fooled a London casino into paying out on bogus wins, Southwark Crown Court was told yesterday.

Koroush Kamalinejad was so good that it required a close examination of a security video to catch him putting his plastic gaming chips on to the roulette table after the ball had landed on a number, Mark Tomassi, for the prosecution, claimed.

Mr Kamalinejad, 22, of Hampstead Garden Suburb, north London, denies two charges of obtaining property by deception at the Charlie Chester casino in Soho.

Mr Tomassi said a punter could collect big winnings by successfully betting on the winning number. 'Let us say number 13 - he might be lucky and put his bet on 13. The bank pays out. Lady Luck. But in this case Lady Luck was replaced by Lady Deceit, because the defendant was guilty, you may think, of rather altering the chances of success.'

Mr Tomassi said the croupiers' practice of covering the winning number on the baize with a 'dolly' should have stopped late bets being placed. 'But so clever is this sleight of hand, in fact, you might deduce it would have done Paul Daniels proud. The defendant was . . . backing a certainty.'

The trial continues today.