Initially planning to be a financial writer, he did so well in a Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) aptitude test that he was put in their management-training program and hired right out of university. Molony spent a few weeks as a teller, before working in savings, current accounts, foreign exchange and loan accounting, then "floating" among some of the bank's network of about 1,600 branches, which gave him a further exposure to the bank's inner workings. At the same time, he was embezzling $10.2 million from CIBC to feed his gambling habit, writing loans in the names of both real and fictitious companies. Molony was then able to transfer millions of dollars out of the bank through a company called California Clearing Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Desert Palace, a
Las Vegas casino. This corporation's only purpose was to let people deposit sums of money into the casino without detection. Molony was arrested on April 27, 1982, the day after he lost a million dollars at the tables at
Caesars Atlantic City Hotel-Casino. Caesars claimed that it never asked Molony for personal or credit information, yet admitted in court to supplying him with tens of thousands of dollars' worth of hotel rooms and a private
Learjet to travel to and from Las Vegas and
Atlantic City. Molony pleaded guilty to embezzlement in November 1983, and served two and a half years in prison, although some sources claim that he served six years. On release, he agreed to a program of restitution and community service, which includes public speaking about the compulsion of gambling. Molony is now married with children, and works as a business consultant. The
New Jersey Casino Control Commission also levied $36,500 in fines against six Caesars employees. Industry analysts estimated that the casino stood to lose between $700,000 and $800,000 because of the shutdown. == In media ==