Court: ‘Pilfered’ Playboy Chips Cannot Cash Out

In a ruling that highlights the complex afterlife of defunct casino assets, a New Jersey appellate court has rejected a man’s attempt to redeem nearly $60,000 in chips from the long-closed Playboy Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City. The court determined the chips were “pilfered” property that should have been destroyed decades ago, making them ineligible for cash redemption despite their authentic appearance and legitimate face value, according to AP News.

Keith Hawkins purchased 389 chips worth $59,500 through an online auction in 2022 and attempted to redeem them in January 2023 through New Jersey’s Unclaimed Property Administration (UPA). The state agency had maintained a special account since 1984 specifically to honor outstanding chips from the Playboy casino, which operated for just three years before closing.

The UPA rejected Hawkins’ claim after New Jersey State Police investigators determined the chips had never been legitimately issued to casino patrons—a prerequisite for redemption. The two-judge appellate panel upheld this decision on April 1, 2025, citing a 1991 court ruling that established cash could only be given for chips that were issued during normal casino operations.

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The Heist: How Casino Chips Escaped Destruction

The investigation into Hawkins’ redemption attempt uncovered a decades-old theft that ultimately led to the chips’ appearance at auction. According to court documents, when the Playboy Casino closed in 1984, management hired a company to destroy all unused chips—a standard practice in the gambling industry to prevent exactly this type of situation.

However, around 1990, a former employee of the destruction company illicitly removed “several boxes of unused chips” and stored them in a bank deposit box. The employee later declared bankruptcy and reportedly forgot about the hidden cache until the bank drilled open the neglected deposit box in 2010, confiscated the contents, and eventually transferred them to an auction house.

Hawkins told authorities he had no knowledge of the chips’ problematic origins when he acquired them through the online auction. Nevertheless, their illicit provenance proved to be the decisive factor in both the UPA’s initial rejection and the court’s subsequent ruling.

Bunny Money: The Legacy of Hefner’s Casino

The Playboy Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City was part of Hugh Hefner’s brief expansion into the gambling industry, operating from 1981 to 1984 before being sold. The chips, featuring the iconic Playboy bunny logo and various models on different denominations, have since become collectibles sought after by both gambling memorabilia enthusiasts and Playboy brand aficionados.

According to PhillyVoice, the property underwent several transformations after its Playboy era, eventually becoming Trump’s World Fair under Donald Trump’s ownership before being demolished in 2000. The Playboy casino was one of four Hefner-branded gambling establishments worldwide, with locations in Las Vegas, London, and the Bahamas—all of which have since closed.

When the Playboy Casino closed, New Jersey regulations required the casino’s owners to deposit $875,000 with the state treasury to cover the redemption of outstanding chips. This account remained active until February 2023—just one month after Hawkins attempted to redeem his auction purchase.

Mississippi Muddle: The Buried Treasure Connection

Hawkins’ case is not the only instance of Playboy casino chips resurfacing decades after the casino’s closure. In 2008, an even more dramatic discovery occurred when thousands of unused Playboy chips were found buried under a concrete slab in Mississippi during construction of a community center.

The land had formerly belonged to Green Duck Corp., a company that once manufactured slot machine tokens and destroyed gaming chips. The discovery flooded online auction sites with Playboy chips, dramatically reducing their collectible value and raising concerns about potential fraudulent redemption attempts.

This Mississippi discovery contributed to the New Jersey Casino Control Commission’s decision to permanently close the $875,000 redemption account in February 2023. Chris Rebuck, then director of the New Jersey Division of Gaming, explicitly cited fraud prevention as the motivation for closing the account.

Collectible Value vs. Face Value

While Hawkins’ chips cannot be redeemed for their $59,500 face value, they retain some worth as collectibles. “Rules state you can only redeem chips from actual casino play, so the stacks of chips will have to remain a keepsake,” 6ABC Philadelphia reported, highlighting the transition from currency to memorabilia.

Casino chip collecting has become a niche but dedicated hobby, with rare specimens sometimes commanding prices exceeding their face value. However, the 2008 Mississippi discovery significantly depressed the market for Playboy chips specifically, making Hawkins’ collection likely worth substantially less than what he paid at auction, let alone their printed denomination.

Some of the rarer Playboy casino chips still fetch hundreds of dollars on auction sites, with factors such as denomination, condition, and specific design details influencing collector interest. Ironically, the stolen nature of Hawkins’ chips might actually increase their appeal to certain collectors interested in their unusual provenance.

Legal Principles vs. Practical Reality

The court’s ruling reinforces a fundamental principle in gambling regulation: chips are only valid currency when legitimately issued during normal casino operations. This distinction helps prevent fraud and maintains the integrity of casino accounting systems.

For Hawkins, the legal principle translated to a significant financial loss. His appeal argued the UPA had relied on insufficient evidence and acted arbitrarily in rejecting his redemption attempt, but the appellate panel disagreed, finding the agency had correctly applied established precedent.

The case serves as a cautionary tale for memorabilia investors and highlights the complex legal status of casino chips long after the establishments that issued them have closed their doors. While Hawkins may have lost his legal gamble, his case provides a fascinating glimpse into the afterlife of Atlantic City’s gambling history and the unexpected journeys of casino artifacts decades after their intended use.

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