Legendary Pictures
A Ressaca II (Todd Phillips, 2011)
The player claims he does not remember playing and believes he was secretly drugged, having filed a lawsuit against the casino.
A regular visitor to the Aria Resort & Casinoin Las Vegas, filed a federal lawsuit accusing the casino and its parent company, MGM Resorts International, of negligence.
In a story that seems like something out of the movie The Hangover, the client claims that he was secretly druggedallowed to gamble even though he was incapacitated and, later, accused of fraud due to gambling debts that he does not remember having incurred.
Michael Duke Thomsona 64-year-old licensed attorney, says his last clear memory, on January 23, 2024, was leaving Aria’s high-stakes blackjack room around midnight with a few thousand dollars in chips.
His next memory, according to the complaint, was waking up the next morning handcuffed to a wall in the casino’s security holding area, facing a $75,000 gambling debt and possible criminal charges.
Thomson afirma not remember withdrawing eight credits from the casinoknown as markers, allegedly emitted between 3am and 9am on January 24th. He claims that the signatures on most of the markers only vaguely resemble his own and that he believes he was “deliberately and surreptitiously drugged,” leaving him completely incapacitated.
The lawsuit argues that his condition was obvious and that casino employees did not intervene, seek medical attention or prevent him from continuing to gamble, the .
According to the complaint, Thomson had a long-standing relationship with Aria and a “impeccable” payment history of your markers. He remembers raising and paying a single $10,000 marker earlier that night. Casino employees later told him that they found him sleeping in the Sky Suites lounge and that he attacked security when he was woken up, which led to his arrest and expulsion from the establishment.
The next day, a VIP employee informed Thomson that he had $75,000 in outstanding checks, although the employee claimed to have noticed discrepancies in your game balance. Thomson claims that his repeated requests for detailed records and explanations were ignored.
Months later, his bank contacted him after the casino submitted the checks for payment. When Thomson instructed the bank not to pay until further clarification, the checks were returned, some marked “Unauthorized” and others “Insufficient Funds.”
Aria then referred the case to the Clark County Prosecutor’s Office’s Bad Check Unit, which charged Thomson in November 2024 with fraud-related crimes. He was detained and later agreed to pay the full amount to resolve the case, which was archived in October.
In his lawsuit, Thomson argues that the checks are invalid, claiming that he was incapacitated, that the signatures were forged and that the casino failed to meet its responsible gaming obligations.
The lawyer demands compensation and a jury trial, accusing the casino of illicit enrichment and bad faith. MGM Resorts has not publicly commented on the allegations.
