Taj Employee Shot and Killed in Taj Casino this afternoon

APNewsBreak: Employee shot at NJ Taj Mahal dies

By WAYNE PARRY – 17 minutes ago (7:00 pm)

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — An employee was shot Wednesday inside the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort and died soon after, and a suspect was in custody, the casino%26#39;s CEO said.

The employee, whose name was not immediately released, was a shift manager who had been with the casino since the day it opened in 1990.

';He was the loveliest human being you ever want to meet,'; said Mark Juliano, CEO of Trump Entertainment Resorts, which runs the casino. ';He didn%26#39;t have an enemy in the world.';

Juliano said there did not appear to be a dispute between the victim and the shooter, whose identity also wasn%26#39;t immediately disclosed.

The casino shut its table games down Wednesday evening and sent home workers assigned there.

Police said they recovered the gun used in the shooting after arresting the suspect in a parking garage.

It was the second incident involving a gunshot at the casino this year.

On Jan. 30, a suspect in a New York embezzlement case pulled a gun and threatened to kill himself in an office there, sparking an 11-hour standoff that included his accidentally firing a shot before he surrendered.

In that incident, the man, from Coram, N.Y., was being sought by New York authorities who had tracked him to the casino and were escorting him into a security office.

During questioning, the man pulled out a handgun. A police officer pushed him into a holding cell and locked the door.

The Taj Mahal is the largest of three Atlantic City casinos run by Trump Entertainment Resorts, the gambling company formerly run by Donald Trump.

Trump relinquished control of it during a 2005 bankruptcy, and in February he resigned as its chairman when bond holders rebuffed his efforts to buy it.

The casino, located on the Boardwalk, is one of the largest in Atlantic City, with 4,000 slot machines and 210 tables games. It opened a 782-room second hotel tower last September.

The Taj Mahal, along with the Trump Plaza Hotel Casino and the Trump Marina Hotel Casino, is in bankruptcy court following a February Chapter 11 filing.

Taj Employee Shot and Killed in Taj Casino this afternoon

Oh my goodness! this is terrible!

Taj Employee Shot and Killed in Taj Casino this afternoon

I was just there last Wednesday and Thursday for a solo trip...I probably know the the victim or at least have seen him. I know pretty much everyone at the Taj, especially the old timers.

Previous reports stated the injuries were minor, now I%26#39;m reading that he died.

It will definately make me think twice about staying there again, especially with all the problems I%26#39;ve had with security in the past. I know this probably could have happened at any casino and you can%26#39;t search everyone, but I%26#39;ve always said as much as they have redone the Taj, you get some seedy charactors there.

My thoughts and prayers go out to this man%26#39;s family and friends.

What the hell is going on at the Taj? First, that elderly man was robbed, then a shooting a few months ago, now this? Its terrible!

Not exactly reassuring considering I stayed there last night and didn%26#39;t leave until 3 pm. I am SO glad I missed this insanity, but wonder why the Taj seems to attract the crazies. Of course all the casinos have problems, but it does seem that the Taj has more than most.

My heart goes out to the family and friends of the man who was killed, as a senseless tragedy like this spirals out and affects many people.

There have been a couple serious incidents at the taj in the past year. A robber tried to escape the police by running through the casino floor, and I think security detained a man and didn%26#39;t frisk him for weapons. It turned out he had a gun and he ended up holding himself hostage.

My friend was down this week. A homeless man came up to her asking her to buy his ';gold'; chains. Security was nowhere. She told him she was not interested. He picked up a drink and threw it on her. When security finally came 10 minutes later they said they couldn%26#39;t do anything about patron on patron crime. She was livid! Finally a manager came over and offered her a $40 meal comp. She is a Chairman card holder and didn%26#39;t need the comp. We are now staying elsewhere on our next trip.

MrsHeartRN,

The local news had a clip on the shooting and you may know the employee.

';Ray Kot was a shift manager who had been with the casino since the day it opened in 1990.';

Sad news for AC and Trump casino...prayers go out to the family.

ACGambler - I had a similar experience a few months ago... As I was sitting down at a VP machine, a homeless man (a very shifty looking character) sat down next to me and tried to force me into buying a ';diamond ring'; from me. I said No Thanks very politely. At which point he started screaming curses at me. Luckily, I had just sat down at the machine, and had only put my slot card in and no money yet. So I quickly yanked out my card and left the area. Of course, there was no security or employees anywhere in sight! It was a bit scary since I%26#39;m a ';vertically challenged'; middle-aged woman who was alone at the casino.

I%26#39;m going back to the Taj on Monday with an elderly friend who won%26#39;t go unless I go. And I promised I%26#39;d take her awhile ago. Now, I%26#39;m not so sure I want to go back there.

It%26#39;s a shame that the casino isn%26#39;t better ';policed';. I think the Taj has some of the best new penny slot machines on the boardwalk.

kc

Those of you who have been going to AC for as long as we have (since just after the first casino opened) realize how much security you saw back then as compared to how little you see today. The difference is huge and I fear these kinds of incidents (and even many more of the little annoyance kinds) will continue as long as security is one area they continue to under fund. Your staff and clients safety should not be an area you save money on, but it is a fact of life not only in the casinos!

This is sad but from reports this morning on the news this happened off the casino floor in an office. If you do not hear that small part of the story you would think this happened on the floor. It does not change the fact a man is dead but it leads people to believe they may not be safe when that is not the story.