Gunmen steal money from display at Calif. casino

[November 10, 2011]  LAKESIDE, Calif. (AP) -- Four masked, armed intruders tried to steal a display case full of money from a suburban San Diego casino by chaining it to an SUV parked outside, but the plan went awry, authorities said.

The case ended up toppling over in the lobby during the predawn Wednesday heist and one of the robbers fired a gunshot into it, San Diego County sheriff's Sgt. Tom Poulin said.

The robbers got away with an unknown amount of cash from the display, which featured a stack of dollar bills with a $100 bill on top, the Sheriff's Department said.

Rick Salinas, general manager of the Barona Resort & Casino, said the robbers discovered the chain was too short, so they returned to their Ford Explorer for an extension, which was still too short. That led one assailant to puncture the case with a rifle butt.

The SUV was found about a mile away with a bag of cash inside. The robbers remain at large.

The case contained "just a few thousand dollars," Salinas said. "It wasn't a lot."

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.