Manager pleads guilty to using ABC Store’s debit card to gamble

RUTHERFORDTON, N.C. (WSPA) – The manager of an Alcohol Beverage Control Board store in Rutherfordton pleaded guilty to embezzling nearly $375,000 which was used to gamble at a North Carolina casino.

72-year-old Russel Edward Hester pleaded guilty Tuesday to wire fraud and money laundering, according to the Untied States Attorney’s Office.

Hester embezzled at least $374,807 from the Alcohol Beverage Control Board of Rutherfordton which manages the ABC Store where he had worked as manager for nearly 10 years.

Beginning in late 2021, Hester used the board’s debit card to withdraw money at Two Kings Casino.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said he used the card at the casino 192 times to withdraw money.

Hester primarily used the money to play slot machines at the casino, winning jackpots totaling $1,469,368. He later deposited that money into his personal bank account.

In one instance, on July 4, 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Hester withdrew $3,000 at the casino, put the money into a slot machine, and won a jackpot of $18,350.

Hester also covered up the embezzlement by providing altered and falsified bank statements to an independent auditor. In those statements, Hester added fake transactions and removed casino transactions.

Hester faces up to 20 years in prison on the wire fraud charge and 10 years in prison on the money laundering charge.

The case was investigated by the IRS, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Rutherfordton Police Department.

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