Metro officer sentenced after stealing over $164K in casino robberies

In July, a jury found 35-year-old Caleb Rogers guilty of three counts of interference with commerce by robbery and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Prosecutors argued during trial that Rogers’ gambling addiction led to the three robberies at the Red Rock Resort, Aliante Hotel and the Rio.

Rogers’ firearm charge came with a mandatory sentence of seven years in prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Cowhig told the judge that Rogers should be sentenced to more than 18 years in prison, arguing that Rogers betrayed the public’s trust by committing at least one of the robberies with his Metropolitan Police Department gun.

“The range of his actions here were not simply random — they were carefully planned,” Cowhig said during Tuesday’s sentencing hearing.

U.S. District Judge Andrew Gordon instead sentenced Rogers to 12 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He also ordered Rogers to pay more than $85,000 in restitution.

“You’ve put a lot of people at risk,” Gordon said.

The judge said he took into account “the good things” Rogers did with his life before the robberies, including working as an EMT and then police officer. Gordon also said that Rogers’ actions reflected negatively on Metro and other law enforcement officers.

As of Tuesday, a Metro spokesperson said, Rogers was still employed by the department but had been placed on “unpaid leave with suspended police powers.”

Rogers, who was dressed in a yellow inmate uniform, briefly spoke during the hearing, quietly telling the judge that he hopes for a “chance at redemption.”

“I don’t have the ability to express to the court the stress I was facing,” Rogers said when explaining his state of mind before the robberies.

Rogers’ mother also addressed the judge and said she was “praying that this is Caleb’s darkest hour.” She said she hopes that Rogers gets treatment for his gambling addiction.

Rogers was arrested in February 2022 after stealing more than $78,000 from the Rio and threatening security guards with his police revolver. He had robbed the Red Rock Resort of about $73,000 months prior with the help of his brother and then robbed the Aliante Hotel of more than $11,000, prosecutors have said.

Defense attorney Richard Pocker argued during the trial that the only evidence linking Rogers to the Red Rock robbery was the testimony of his brother, Josiah, which Pocker said was unreliable. The brother entered a deal with prosecutors where he could not be prosecuted unless he lied on the stand during the trial, Pocker has said.

Rogers robbed the Rio sportsbook on Feb. 27, 2022, pushing an employee to the ground and shoving stacks of cash into a bag. After running out of the casino, Rogers struggled over his firearm with a security guard.

The guard testified during trial that Rogers told him, “Are you willing to die? I will shoot you.”