This week Billings, Montana police continued their investigation into two recent shootings — one of which took place at a local casino — to find out if they are connected.
One of them occurred early Sunday night when a man fired three rounds near the bar at the Diamond Jubilee. According to the Billings Gazette no one was injured, in spite of the casino being crowded.
The casino is relatively small and apparently does not have a large staff. One employee was working in a back office when an unidentified robber entered the venue. The would-be thief later fled the casino, and was unsuccessful at getting any cash.
Later that Sunday night, a second shooting took place where an unidentified man tried to rob Gas N Go, says a Billings police department tweet. It is situated about six miles away from the casino.
The crook fired one round of shots at a woman employee. The clerk, 26-year-old was wounded; however, her injuries did not seem to be life-threatening, KULR reported. The Gazette said, she was transported to a local hospital in an ambulance for treatment.
As of Tuesday, suspects in both incidents were still on the loose.
Crime Binge in Billings Leads to Multiple Shootings
There have been many other shootings this month in Billings. The Gazette reported that over the past 10 days, at least four victims were injured in city shootings.
As mentioned on the website Casino.org, a woman aged 24 was injured after she was shot at Shooters Bar and Casino in Billings on Nov. 10. KPAX reported, a 22-year-old woman was arrested concerning the shooting.
Billings was also where a police officer fatally shot a man in Lucky Lil’s casino in a 30-second stand-off in April 2018. Despite the fact the suspect was equipped only with a CO2 gun, the officer, Sgt. Bret Becker, was considered right in his use of deadly force.
That April night, Shawn Michael Hubbard told his ex-girlfriend he was going to rob a casino and the police would have to shoot him. Police warned Hubbard repeatedly to put his hands up and to drop his gun.
“I’ll shoot. I have hostages,” were his final words to Becker. Becker hit Hubbard twice in the chest firing his patrol rifle eight times.
At the time of his death, Hubbard had meth in his system in addition to a huge amount of methadone — nearly twice the amount which would possibly prove lethal for a first-time user, according to the coroner’s report.
Nevada Casino Shootings
Somewhere else, in Nevada, a man supposedly attempted in August to hold up the Golden Nugget and afterwards, the Aquarius casinos in Laughlin, Nevada.
He was shot dead by police following a stand-off, after he pointed a gun at them outside the Aquarius, according to police accounts.
In January, an armed man was shot dead in the casino lobby by security guards at the Green Valley Ranch Casino in Henderson, Nevada.
Terrified players alerted security after watching the man walking through the casino with a handgun, according to police reports.
Casinos have been forced to strengthen security following the Las Vegas shootings of October 1, 2017, when Stephen Paddock from his room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino, opened fire on a country music festival, killing 58 people and injuring hundreds.
