Woman Collects Leftover Cash at Casino, Sparking Debate

A creator shared a “game” that she likes to play at casinos — collecting the leftover cash people leave at machines — but a number of commenters warned her that’s not something she’s supposed to do.

The video was put up on TikTok by creator Ileana, and it has attracted more than 2.7 million views as of Monday.

In the short video, she films inside a casino with a small stack of digital vouchers for cash from slot machines. She states, “I don’t know if anyone else plays this game when they’re at casinos, but my favorite game to play is walking around and collecting all of the leftover cash people leave on their machines and seeing how much I can get.”

@ileana.justine Do you play this game? #casinogaming #casinogame #casino #casinolife #casinogambling #slotmachine #slotmachinewins #slotmachinewin ♬ original sound – Ileana

She then adds, “Tonight’s grand total, after about a half hour, was $7.28.”

Commenters had a range of reactions, with some concerned about the legality of such an action.

“That won’t fly at the casino I work at,” a commenter warned, echoing several others who insist the practice is frowned upon, allegedly going by names like “silver mining” and “credit sweeping.”

“My friend got arrested for doing that,” one claimed.

The creator reassured that commenter, “I had my lawyer check into the legality; it wasn’t illegal in the state I was in.”

Another insisted, “Money left behind belongs to the casino.”

One even went as far as to accuse her of taking money that would have gone to employees and calling her a “cheap-ass American,” though another person jumping into the thread stated, “You can’t POSSIBLY think this money would go to the employees.”

Others pointed out, however, that this is a casino we’re talking about.

“The way the casino makes millions of dollars and people are upset you took $7.28,” a commenter pointed out, leaving Ileana to respond, “Right? Why are we feeling bad for casinos?”

One pointed out, “This is the adult version of finding Chuck E. Cheese tickets on the floor,” referring to the mouse-themed kids’ arcade.

Another noted, “Everyone in the comments telling you it’s a crime is killing me.”

And someone did the math on her haul, which worked out to about $14.50 per hour, and congratulated her for making more than minimum wage with her harvesting.

Still, some wondered if it was worth it.

“Legal or illegal, you just look ridiculous doing this,” someone asserted.

“Fine by me,” Ileana retorted. “I’ll look ridiculous with my fully-paid-for fancy coffee.”

The Daily Dot has reached out to the creator via TikTok comment.