Casino card dealer accused of workers’ comp fraud

State investigators accuse a Spokane card dealer of illegally taking $27,000 in workers’ comp benefits. Victor O. Arrendondo, 58, filed claims that he injured his lower back in May 2013 as a card dealer. As he collected wage-replacement checks and used vocational rehabilitation services provided by the state, he secretly went back to work as a card dealer for at least eight months at two different casinos in Spokane, according to the state Dept. of Labor & Industries. On Monday he will be charged with first degree theft, according to a press release from L&I. “This case serves as a warning to people who fake or exaggerate workers’ comp injuries. Odds are, we’ll track you down,” said Elizabeth Smith, who directs L&I’s Fraud Prevention & Labor Standards.