Shots fired during Mazatzal Hotel and Casino robbery
Payson AZ July 22 2018 The FBI is looking for two “violent casino robbers” who held up the Mazatzal Hotel and Casino early Tuesday morning.
Around 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, two masked men dressed completely in black entered the casino brandishing a long gun and pistols, according to an FBI press release.
FBI Special Agent Glenn Milnor said the men demanded to get into the casino’s vault and security staff initially denied access. When they did, the men fired shots into the air and threatened casino employees.
The men were allowed into the vault and fled with an undisclosed amount of money in a large duffel bag. They ran out the casino’s unoccupied ballroom and into the forest.
No one was injured.
The men were already gone when Payson Police, the Gila County Sheriff’s Office and Tonto Apache Tribal Police entered the casino.
The suspects are described as being 5 feet, 10 inches tall and average build.
“They were very quick and efficient,” Milnor said.
Milnor said a violent takeover robbery like this is uncommon and they are concerned for the public’s safety.
Andrew Provencio was staying at the casino Monday night when he says he awoke to a call from the front desk around 3 a.m. An employee told him not to come out of his room due to a situation downstairs, but offered no further details. Provencio, who owns Uncle Herbs, looked out the window and saw police cars outside.
Provencio went back to sleep and left his room around 8 a.m. When he did, he found the lobby full of officers and every exit of the casino blocked off. Provencio said he did not hear any shots fired.
The FBI is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspects.
Anyone with information about the robbery or identity of the suspects is asked to call the FBI Phoenix Field Office at 623-466-1999 or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.
A casino official said they were offering counseling services to the employees involved in the incident. Workers were replacing ceiling tiles off the ballroom Wednesday damaged by the gunfire.
The FBI released surveillance footage of the men running through the casino.
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