Episode Details
Back to Episodes"The Gambling Capital of the World: Intelligence, Las Vegas Style!" – with James Lockhart and Keith Michaels
Description
Summary
Keith Michaels (LinkedIn) and James Lockhart (LinkedIn) join Andrew to discuss intelligence in an unlikely place: Casinos! James and Keith have collectively over 30 years of experience within Las Vegas gaming surveillance.
What You’ll Learn
Intelligence
- How casinos conduct surveillance
- Collaboration between casinos and intelligence organizations
- The mob origins of Las Vegas
- Nation-state intelligence threats in casinos
Reflections
- It’s just the luck of the draw…or is it?
- Playing your cards right
And much, much more …
***FULL SHOW NOTES AVAILABLE HERE***
Episode Notes
This week on SpyCast, Andrew is joined by Keith Michaels and James Lockhart on a journey into the secret underbelly of the “Gambling Capital of the World,” Las Vegas. How do casinos conduct surveillance, and what prompted them to adopt formal surveillance operations? Tune in to find out.
Quotes of the Week
“Casino operations are venues for intelligence activity, not just for the low-level criminal or the higher-level criminal, but also nation states … You know, we're only catching about 35% of what's going on. There's a lot of cash moving around very fast. A lot of people coming in and out in a casino. So, the possibilities are kind of endless.” – James Lockhart.
***FULL SHOW NOTES AVAILABLE HERE***
Resources
SURFACE SKIM
*SpyCasts*
- 70th Anniversary of James Bond, Special with Alexis Albion on 007, Part 1 (2023)
- 70th Anniversary of James Bond, Special with Alexis Albion on 007, Part 2 (2023)
- How Artificial Intelligence is Changing the Spy Game with Mike Susong (2023)
- Baseball and Espionage with Ryan Zimmerman and Marc Polymeropoulos (2022)
- Dealing with Russia: A Conversation with Counterintelligence Legend Jim Olson (2022)
*Beginner Resources*
- A Brief History of Las Vegas, T. Lambert, Local Histories (2021) [Short Article]
- A Brief History of Gambling, R. Cormack, Medium (2018] [Short Article]
- How to Play Baccarat, WikiHow (2020) [Short Video]
***FULL SHOW NOTES AVAILABLE HERE***
DEEPER DIVE
Books
- Casino: The Rise and Fall of the Mob in Las Vegas, N. Pileggi (Ebury Press, 2015)
- Roll the Bones