Poker Blogger, Photographer Used Chopsticks to Steal Dealer Tips at Casino

MASHANTUCKET, Conn. – (Associated Press) - A poker blogger has been sentenced to a probation program for stealing nearly $700 in dealers’ tips by pulling the cash out of a locked box with chopsticks.

Forty-one-year-old Jay Newnum of Fishers, Ind., has returned the money and announced in a blog post that he plans to “step away from the poker world indefinitely.”

The Day of New London reports (http://bit.ly/1dBp89p ) that Newnum was arrested on a misdemeanor larceny charge Dec. 16 for the theft at Foxwoods Resort Casino, but state police didn’t announce the arrest until Thursday. Newnum was granted accelerated rehabilitation, which allows charges to be erased after probation periods.

State police say Newnum was caught “fishing” cash out of the dealers’ tip box with chopsticks.

Newnum says in a statement that he’s not discussing the case.