Manhattan man's Harrah's casino winnings not known in battery case

Neither Joliet police nor an attorney could say how much a Manhattan man won before he ended up in handcuffs after allegedly fighting with Harrah’s casino security guards.

Jeff Tomczak, attorney for Brian M. Kestel, 38, of the 14800 block of West Delaney Road, said he couldn’t say how much Kestel won as it would violate attorney-client privilege.

Joliet police Sgt. Christopher Botzum couldn’t say either. Botzum said in an email that the police report did not state how much he won.

On Saturday evening, Kestel was asked by security guards at Harrah’s casino, 151 N. Joliet St., to provide his identification “due to the amount of money he won for reporting purposes,” police said.

Kestel allegedly refused, police said. He was asked by security guards to leave the casino multiple times then was told by the guards that he was going to be detained, but pulled away, according to police.

Kestel then punched a security guard several times, Botzum said. After a brief struggle, Kestel was subdued, he said.

Tomczak said he has filed subpoenas for all video footage of the incident. He said he believes Kestel might have been approached by guards from behind and was not aware he was going to be grabbed from behind while he was in line to cash his chips.

“We’re just going to wait and see what the discovery shows,” Tomczak said.

Kestel was booked into the Will County jail and his bond was set at $50,000. He posted 10 percent of his bond Monday and he was released that evening, according to jail records.