Hands in the Pocket

Jeremiah K. Villegas, 33, was already banned from Northern Quest Resort and Casino for 99 years. The Kalispel Tribe posted him off all tribal property in June after assaults, threats, and a history of pushing and kicking coin machines. Court records say he still walked in 14 times between 26 August and 3 September 2025.

That second walk-in is why prosecutors added burglary. In Washington, coming back onto a posted property can be charged that way. The cheating count is separate. A Kalispel Tribal Gaming Agency agent told police Villegas may have been using a vibrating device on the coin pushers to take coins he had not won.

Video from the floor and from inside the machines covers those nine days. Agents say Villegas fed money in, then stood with his hands in a sweatshirt pocket and pressed the pocket to the side of the cabinet. The machine shook. Coins dropped into the dispenser and triggered bonuses. He cashed out, then did it again. Footage also shows him kicking the cabinet while seated.

No dollar figure was published. Airway Heights police arrested him on 12 October. The file started as 14 counts of cheating and 14 counts of burglary, one for each visit. It was later cut to one count of second-degree cheating and one count of second-degree burglary. KHQ reported that on 29 April 2026 he pleaded guilty to both. The court gave him 20 days on each count.