The Daily Populous Monday December 1st, 2025 evening edition
Authored by theguardian.com and submitted by Sky-Dancer8791

A married couple from Kazakhstan has allegedly won more than $1m from Sydney’s Crown casino using a tiny camera hidden in a Mickey Mouse T-shirt and “deep-seated earpieces” that allowed them to communicate.

New South Wales police said on Sunday the couple, Dilnoza Israilova and Alisherykhoja Israilov, were charged with dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception, after being arrested in the Barangaroo casino.

“On Thursday, a 36-year-old woman was observed by casino staff wearing a small, discreet camera attached to her shirt,” a police spokesperson said.

“Officers were notified and attended the casino, where they arrested the woman and her 44-year-old husband.”

Investigators allege the couple were carrying “small, magnetised probes, batteries, and a mobile phone with a fitted attachment that allowed the camera function of the phone to discreetly view, capture or record images”.

Officers also seized a small custom-made mirror attachment for the mobile phone, police alleged.

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The couple had travelled to Sydney from Kazakhstan in October 2025. They applied for Crown memberships on the day they arrived, police alleged.

View image in fullscreen Police allege the couple won $1.18m at Crown in October and November. Photograph: NSW police

Over the course of October and November, the pair visited the casino multiple times, winning a total of $1.18m, which raised suspicions at Crown, police alleged.

“With their mobile phones capturing images of the table, the pair communicated using deep-seated earpieces through which they received instructions to wager on various card games and ultimately cheat the casino,” NSW police alleged on Sunday.

Officers searched the couple’s accommodation on Kent Street in Sydney, where they allegedly located other gambling props, high-end jewellery and €2,000.

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The couple appeared in local bail court on Friday. Neither applied for bail and it was formally refused.

Dilnoza Israilova was due back in court in February. Her husband, Alisherykhoja Israilov, was scheduled to appear in the Downing Centre local court on 11 December.

The organised crime squad commander, Det Supt Peter Faux, said police and the casino worked together to detect and prevent criminal activity.

“Our detectives collaborate closely with casino security to identify and disrupt unlawful behaviour,” Faux said. “This strong cooperation is vital to maintaining the integrity of gaming operations and is reflected in outcomes like this.”

BreandyDownUnder on December 1st, 2025 at 13:46 UTC »

Crappy article. There's no information as to how they actually did it, and what everyone else needs to do it too. I don't see how pure observation and discreet communication can beat the casino odds. Card counting can be done without all that technology, and will get you thrown out but isn't a crime.

getagrip1212 on December 1st, 2025 at 13:08 UTC »

Good for them. Game the system.

mtranda on December 1st, 2025 at 12:13 UTC »

Casinos hate being the ones getting cheated.