A bizarre incident at Bally’s Casino in Evansville, Indiana on Nov. 26 resulted in a vehicle plunging through the roof of the conference center attached to the gaming property.
Authorities in Indiana have charged the driver, Jeremiah Oldham, with criminal recklessness and criminal mischief. Fortunately, no one, including Oldham, was seriously harmed in the incident, which occurred the Monday prior to Thanksgiving just prior to 9 a.m. at the Indiana casino.
Oldham drove his Ford SUV into a parking lot barrier and shoved it out of his way, before driving his vehicle over the edge of the seventh floor parking garage. The SUV plummeted 40 feet into the roof of the executive convention center building of the casino, coming to rest on top of an escalator that is frequented by Bally’s Casino guests. However, at the time of the incident, no one was on the escalator.
Reporting from the Evansville Courier & Press states that the car “landed upside down onto the roof of the executive conference center,” according to s statement from Evansville Fire Department spokesperson Kim Garrett. According to Garrett, the vehicle driven by Oldham proceeded to fall through a floor and was “sitting on the second level of this conference center in the elevator lobby, where you get on and off the escalators,” prior to being removed last week.
An eyewitness told the Courier & Press that Oldham drove the SUV recklessly on the second floor of the parking garage before driving to the seventh level. When the SUV was driven off the parking deck, a large concrete slab also fell into the conference center.
Suspect has Criminal and Mental Health History
A charge of criminal recklessness is a Level 6 felony in Indiana, according to court documents. The 41-year old Oldham reportedly has a criminal history. The affidavit listing the casino driving charges indicates he is currently on federal probation for prior felony offenses. Channel 14 News in Evansville reported that Oldham was recently incarcerated for failure to report as a sex offender. There are allegedly mental health factors which could be involved in the Bally’s Casino incident. The criminal affidavit for the casino crash claims Oldham has failed to be treated for psychosis.
An officer who responded to the incident indicated in a report that Oldham had failed to take prescribed medication for an unknown condition. Oldham was still in the hospital with unknown injuries as of Thanksgiving, according to Channel 14 News.
Channel 14 News also reported that Oldham has yet to be arrested on the charges. A date for an arraignment is not indicated on the Vanderburgh Circuit Court website.
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