A Mississippi man who previously built his public persona around illusion and sleight-of-hand is now facing prison after an Iowa jury found him guilty of several felony gaming offenses related to a casino fraud operation.
Shaun Joseph Benward, 38, also known professionally as “Shaun Mistery,” was convicted on November 6, 2025, in Lyon County, Iowa. A judge later sentenced him to ten years in prison, with credit for time already served.
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The accusations arise from an investigation conducted in 2018 by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation’s Special Enforcement Operations Bureau. Authorities said Benward committed a series of fraudulent acts at Grand Falls Casino in Larchwood, Iowa, influencing casino employees to earn more than $10,000 in unlawful awards.
According to investigators, Benward split up over $12,000 in transactions to circumvent federal IRS reporting requirements. According to court documents, he changed attire several times and utilized different casino tellers to escape detection.
Benward was convicted on five charges of money laundering, five counts of cheating in gambling games, and one count of conspiracy to commit a crime.
Warrants were issued for his arrest in 2018, but officials were unable to find him for several years. He was apprehended in Mississippi in April 2025.
Prosecutors said the Iowa case is part of a larger pattern of casino-related fraud charges in other states.
The Special Enforcement Operations Bureau is the primary criminal investigation and enforcement agency for Iowa’s gambling sector.
The conviction marks the end of what authorities described as a years-long endeavor to bring Benward to justice.
