Man, 60, arrested for allegedly beating up poker arcade cashier

A 60-year-old man allegedly beat up a female cashier of a poker establishment in Dandan on Saturday at noon when she asked him to leave for refusing to return the $10 overpayment that she mistakenly gave him a day earlier.

Augusto T. Aldan, jobless, was arrested for assault and battery, and disturbing the peace on that same day when he returned to JL Poker 1, where the alleged beating happened.

The victim sustained scratches on the right eyebrow and above the eyebrow, and a right black eye. She also suffered a scratch on the chest and was complaining of pain on the head and upper back, police said.

The alleged beating was caught by a surveillance camera, police said.

At a hearing yesterday, Superior Court Associate Judge Teresa Kim-Tenorio allowed Aldan to post $125 cash and $1,125 in unsecured bond or 10 percent of the $1,250 cash bail.

Assistant public defender Michael Sato was appointed as counsel for Aldan. Assistant attorney general Chester Hinds appeared for the government. Preliminary hearing will be on June 28 at 1:30pm. Arraignment will be on July 11 at 9am.

Police Detective Peter A. Aldan stated in his report that two police officers responded to JL Poker 1 on Saturday at 1:05pm shortly after the alleged victim called for police assistance.

The detective said investigation showed that on Friday defendant Aldan was playing poker at JL Poker 1 and cashed out from his poker machine and brought 40 coins to the cashier.

The cashier overlooked the cash payout and gave Aldan $10 more. She later realized about the over payment, but Aldan had already left the poker room. The cashier had to pay the cash register $10 out of her own pocket.

The following day, Saturday, at 12:30pm, while the victim was attending the cashier’s booth she saw Aldan walk into the game room. She confronted him about the $10 she mistakenly gave him the previous day.

Aldan denied receiving $10 more. She asked to return the $10, but defendant told her that she gave him $10 and not $20. The cashier told the victim that he should not be in the game room if he was not playing. The cashier then told him to leave.

Aldan got mad and started pushing the cashier, who was raising her hands in front of herself for protection. Aldan was aggressively approaching the cashier. He then allegedly punched her on the head, causing her to feel dizzy and drop the keys for the poker room and cashier’s booth.

Aldan then allegedly punched the cashier again on the chest and back.

The victim only managed to get away when a female customer stepped in between and shouted at Aldan to stop. The cashier ran into the cashier’s booth and used her cell phone to call 911 for police assistance.

Aldan picked up the keys that the cashier dropped on the floor, and walked out of the game room.

At 1:05pm, two officers arrived and reviewed the video footage. At this juncture, Aldan came back, prompting the police to arrest him.