Teenager Arrested for Las Vegas Strip Hotel Cyber Attack, Poker Palace Gets Buyer + More

Teenager Arrested in $100 Million Las Vegas Strip Cyberattack

In a shocking development, an arrest has been made in the 2023 cyberattack that had a massive $100 million price tag for MGM Resorts.

According to Las Vegas police, a teenager has been implicated in the assault on the Vegas Strip giant, and the kiddo got into the system through an amazingly simply method.

Law enforcement sources state that the attack on the collection of Las Vegas casinos was quite simple. An MGM Grand employee was found on LinkedIn and the fraudster impersonated them and called the company's IT department to request a reset of their password. Once the password was reset, the attacker had access to internal MGM systems in just ten minutes!

Between the months of August and October in 2023, several casinos were assaulted by "Scattered Spider," an organized cyber threat group. Hackers were able to disable key cards for hotel rooms and slot machines, plus they could lock employees out of their e-mail accounts and prevent reservations and bookings.

The majority of the attacks came against MGM Resorts properties, but in the same time period, Caesars was also affected by a cyberattack. According to filings, Caesars "took steps" to make sure the data was deleted, but couldn't guarantee that it was done. From this it appears as if Caesars paid some sort of ransom to their attackers.

Back to the MGM Resorts case. The FBI handled the investigation and determined the teen was their likely culprit. The teenager turned himself in at the Clark County Juvenile Detention Center on September 17th.

The Clark County District Attorney's Office is attempting to charge the suspect as an adult. Charges include extortion and using another person's identifying info to harm or impersonate them, and unlawful acts regarding computers.

Because the suspect is a minor, the name hasn't been released at this time. Police also declined to disclose if the accused acted alone or had co-conspirators.

Locals' Favorite Poker Palace Gets New Life with Buyer

We previously reported that North Las Vegas' Poker Palace Casino was going to be closing permanently on October 1st. Now it appears that the closure will only be temporary, as a buyer has emerged for the property.

Truckee Gaming is the new owner of the property, taking over for previous owners Marvin and Laura Coleman, who operated the Poker Palace casino for fifty years.

Truckee Gaming is temporarily closing the casino and giving it an overhaul before re-opening in early 2026.

According to the new owners, restrooms will be remodeled during this time, plus they will be knocking down some walls to open up more casino space. The restaurant will be expanded to add thirty-two more seats and a larger kitchen. The main entrance, carpets and ceilings will all be revamped too.

It is still unclear if they will be offering live poker. Poker Palace was the only remaining poker room in North Las Vegas.

Las Vegas Casino Workers Not Getting Shifts

The situation in Las Vegas tourism may actually be a little worse than the employment statistics show. While we, and other outlets, have reported on layoffs at several Las Vegas Strip properties, there appears to be even more issues that aren't visible when you just look at the layoffs and firings.

According to Las Vegas' KTNV Channel 13, many Las Vegas casino workers are in financial straits, as some casino properties just aren't scheduling them for any shifts at all, even though they were never officially laid off.

July marked the seventh straight month of year-over-year tourism declines, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, as the city posted a huge 12% decline versus July of 2024.

These tourism numbers are crusing casino employees. Tips are reportedly way down for those who are working, but many employees aren't even getting any shifts at all.

Las Vegas Wants the NFL's 2029 Super Bowl

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, city officials and the NFL are in talks to bring the 2029 Super Bowl to Las Vegas.

Previously, Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Raiders submitted a letter stating their hope to host the 2029, 2030, or 2031 Super Bowl. Since that time, the city has met all of the requirements laid in front of them, making them a top contender to host Super Bowl 63.

According to the Review-Journal, "no deal is imminent." However, if the two sides reach terms, the NFL could announce the site for Super Bowl 63 as early as this October's fall owners' meeting in New York.

This would not be the first Super Bowl hosted in Sin City. Las Vegas hosted the Super Bowl back in February 2024, when the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in overtime.

There were 330,000 visitors in town for the 2024 event, and the day after the game Harry Reid International Airport set a record with 104,000 passengers.

Casino Jobs Included in "No Taxes on Tips" Program

Some guidelines have been released for the "No Taxes on Tips" program, and casino workers will be rejoicing when they see the list of included occupations.

In a list published by the government, casino workers, hotel workers, and bartenders will be covered in the new program, including casino change people, workers in casino cages, and folks that work in sportsbooks. Officials from the Treasury Department did state that there will be come exclusions, including performing arts, athletics, law, finance, and health care workers in the industry.

Tips excluded from taxes in the program can either be directly received tips or tips received through pooling. Deductions begin on 2025 tax returns, and itemization is not required to claim the deduction.

The program is scheduled to expire in 2028.