Bomb Threat at Nevada Casino Leads to Arrest of South Lake Tahoe Man

^{Authorities arrested Seth Maybee from South Lake Tahoe after he phoned in a bomb threat to a Harrah's Casino in western Nevada. (Background photo: WireStock / Alamy; inset image: South Lake Tahoe Police Dept.)}

A South Lake Tahoe man was arrested on Tuesday after allegedly phoning in a bomb threat to Harrah’s Casino in Stateline, Nevada following significant gambling losses at the resort. 

According to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO), deputies responded to Harrah’s Casino on Monday, Jan. 5, after a reported bomb threat was phoned in. 

Caller Tied Threat to Casino Losses 

The caller explicitly made a threat to the casino, according to DCSO officials. 

“Yeah, I just lost $20,000 at your stupid casino, and I am going to destroy it now,” the caller said, according to the DCSO report. “I am going to bomb it. This is a bomb threat.” 

Investigators said they were able to determine that the call was made by Seth Maybee of South Lake Tahoe. That led officers of the South Lake Tahoe Police Department to arrest Maybee at his residence early Tuesday morning.  

Maybee faces charges of making a bomb threat and making terroristic threats. He was booked at the El Dorado County Jail, and faces extradition to Douglas County to face his charges. 

“I want to thank Harrah’s Casino for their quick reporting of this incident and the South Lake Tahoe Police Department for their assistance in the arrest of Maybee,” Sheriff Dan Coverley said in a statement. “Due to the history of the Harvey’s bombing in the early 1980s, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and Stateline casinos take these threats very seriously. Fortunately, we were able to make an arrest before anything happened.” 

Stateline's Infamous Casino Bombing 

Sherrif Coverley’s statement references the history of bomb threats at casinos in the United States, as well as an infamous bombing at a casino in Stateline, Nevada. 

In August 1980, Harvey’s Resort Hotel was attacked by a group of men who brought a booby-trapped bomb into the facility. During an attempt to disarm the bomb, it exploded, causing an estimated $18 million in damages but resulting in no injuries or deaths. John Birges Sr. was ultimately convicted of creating the bomb as part of an extortion plot against the casino. 

While that may be the most dramatic event involving a bomb at an American casino, there have been more recent incidents where explosive devices have been found at resorts.  

In September 2024, officials partially evacuated the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Tampa, Florida after crude explosive devices were found at the resort. A device with fireworks components was found in a men’s room near the casino, after which a bomb disposal team was deployed to deactivate the device.  

Police then found a second explosive device in another men’s room, which was once again deactivated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Bomb Disposal Team. Law enforcement officials would later charge Tampa, Florida resident Bryan Robert Eckley with placing the two devices in the casino.