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LAS VEGAS >> A Las Vegas police officer who was arrested last month for attempting to rob a casino on The Strip has been charged this week in federal court in connection with two other casino robberies, U.S. prosecutors said.
The federal criminal complaint filed Friday accuses Caleb Rogers, 33, of arming himself in three heists dating back to November with the same .357-caliber service revolver that belonged to the Las Vegas Metro Police Department.
Rogers, who has been a Las Vegas officer since 2015, is accused of stealing at least $90,000 during the three holdups, including nearly $79,000 when he demanded money at the cashier cage at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino’s sportsbook on Feb. 27.
He was arrested minutes later after he threatened to shoot a security officer who chased him into the parking and wrested his gun away, the new criminal complaint said.
When the security officer asked Rogers his name, he replied, “Rogers, P No. 15666,” giving his name and Metro identification number, a way police officers commonly identify themselves to one another,” according to an affidavit signed by an FBI agent.
The complaint said he wore body armor during each holdup.
Rogers is scheduled to make his initial appearance Thursday before a U.S. magistrate judge in Las Vegas on federal charges of interference with commerce and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported his attorney, G. Oliver Melgar, declined comment. Melgar did not immediately respond to a request for comment today from The Associated Press.
Rogers became a suspect in the first two heists partly because he walked with a gait from an earlier knee injury, the criminal complaint said. It said a search of his residence found black latex gloves, like the robber used in all three crimes, occupational injury forms from the 2019 injury, eviction paperwork and past-due notices.
Court records don’t indicate how much money was stolen from the Red Rock Resort and Casino on Nov. 12. He’s accused of stealing $11,500 from the Aliante hotel-casino on Jan. 6.
Rogers was booked into county jail last week for burglary with a firearm, assault with a deadly weapon and two counts of robbery with a deadly weapon related to the February holdup at the Rio sportsbook.
Shortly before 7 a.m. that day, he demanded money, threatened to shoot one of the cashiers then climbed over the counter, grabbed one of the women by her shoulders and shoved her to the floor, according to the new federal complaint. It said he yelled, “This isn’t your money, it’s not worth losing your life over it.”
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