The Borgatain Atlantic City has taken the initiative to beef up security in its poker tournaments by introducing brand new chips boasting several modern-day features designed to thwart counterfeiters. The purchase of the high-tech chips was reportedly the direct result of the scandal allegedly caused at least in part by Christian Lusardi, a North Carolina man who was charged with introducing fake chips into an event in January.

“This was very expensive, but very necessary,” Borgata Senior Vice President Joe Lupo said to the Atlantic City press. “In order to have the biggest tournaments in Atlantic City and as the market leader, we need to ensure the integrity of the games.”

The new tournament chips will display a more intricate design, make use of more colors, and come installed with an authentication device that can be checked under ultraviolet light. On top of that, security will now make rounds to periodically verify that the chips are genuine in a measure Lupo called “the new normal.”

In January, Lusardi won $6,814 in the tournament allegedly with the help of the phony chips, which he later admitted to purchasing from China and hiding in the casino’s bathroom. Eventually, players realized that the chips weren’t genuine and alerted Borgata’s staff, who suspended the tournament and launched an investigation.

Lusardi(pictured) later returned to his hotel at Harrah’s Atlantic City, but sensing his scheme had been uncovered, apparently flushed the rest of his $2.8 million in bogus chips down the toilet. The move proved to be his downfall, though, as the chips clogged the hotel’s drainage system, causing guests to complain about leaking pipes and leading maintenance men to find the strange source of the problem in Lusardi’s room.

While the North Carolina man was subsequently arrested, his actions caused a whole host of problems for Borgata and the players involved in the tournament. The event was frozen with 27 players remaining, but not after several finishers had already been paid.

In February, affected players filed a class-action lawsuit against the casino alleging that Borgata had committed fraud by failing to provide adequate supervision of the tournament. They now seek to be refunded their buy-ins plus food, travel, and hotel costs.

As part of the investigation by the New Jersey State Police and the Division of Gaming Enforcement, the $1.5 million in remaining prize money has been frozen and certain denominations of chips have been sequestered. In fact, the casino’s need to replenish its stock was one factor that led to the purchase of the new high-tech chips.

Lusardi’s troubles didn’t end with the tournament, either. After police raided his Fayetteville home, they found a collection of 37,500 pirated DVDs, DVD burners, and packaging equipment allegedly used to distribute the illegal material.

For the tournament cheating scandal alone, Lusardi, who has already been arrested on gambling offenses in the past, has been charged with theft and rigging a public contest. He remains in custody awaiting trial while authorities continue to investigate his bootlegging activities.

At Borgata, the new chips were already in play on Tuesday after being debuted during the Spring Poker Open. Along with the new chips, the casino has vowed to add more security during its poker events and conduct more chip counts each day.

“Considering that we have biggest poker tournaments on the East Coast and we expect to continue to do so, it’s imperative that we ensure that our customers have confidence in the integrity of the tournaments,” said Lupo.

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Photo credit Luke Edwards