Harrah’s comes calling on former NBA star Manute Bol, attempting to collect over $26,000 from the Sudanese refugee.
Harrah’s Casino Hotel of Atlantic City filed a lawsuit this week against the 7-foot 7-inch former NBA star Manute Bol, attempting to collect a $26,172 judgment from 1996 entered against him in New Jersey.Though the complaint does not list the cause of the debt, Bol gambled at Harrah’s in the 1990’s when he still played in the NBA, according to the Washingtonian magazine.“It was an early winter’s evening at Harrah’s Casino in Atlantic City,” the Washingtonian reported in 1994. “Manute Bol, the 7-foot, 7-inch center then with the Washington Bullets, was curled around a craps table, flipping purple $500 chips onto the green-and-white felt. The size of the player, and his wagers, attracted a crowd. In about 20 minutes, Bol lost $10,000. He unfolded his remarkable legs and left for the blackjack table to try to win it back.“It is unclear why Harrah’s waited until now to file the complaint. The casino’s local attorney, Edward Jacobs of New Haven-based Jacobs & Rozich, said he was referred the case and could not explain the time lapse between the original judgment and this lawsuit.Bol left the NBA and returned to his native Sudan in 1997. However, Bol, a Christian, soon fell out of favor with Khartoum’s Muslim government, and eventually fled the country in 2002. He came to Connecticut, where he had first landed at the University of Bridgeport as a phenom in the early 1980’s. He currently lives in West Hartford.Since his return, Bol has actively spoken out against the genocide in his native country. He could not be reached for comment on this story. A close friend, Wethersfield attorney Andrew Kearns, said Bol is out of state attending a wedding. Having lost his basketball fortune, Bol currently lives “hand to mouth” making personal appearances, Kearns said.Last year, Bol was seriously injured in a car crash involving a taxi in which he was a passenger. The cab driver was drunk and drove with a suspended license at the time, the Hartford Courant reported in May, adding that Bol now walks with a cane. The former basketball star is suing the taxi company for negligence.