The State of Maine is hiring a former professional casino gambling cheat to train the state’s casino inspectors, table game supervisors and other casino staff.

The Maine Department of Public Safety, which oversees the Maine Gambling Control Unit, will be paying casino table game protection consultant and ex-cheat Richard Marcus $12,000 for a four-day training, according to a state contract.

“Mr. Marcus was a prior casino cheat who developed many highly effective cheating techniques and is widely considered to have been the best professional cheat [in] casino gaming history,” department staff wrote in the contract.

“He has trained and offered consultation to more than 100 casinos worldwide,” they wrote. “Additionally, he offers training to surveillance and regulators on what to look for.”

On his LinkedIn profile, Marcus describes himself as a “unique casino game protection trainer.”

“Training is not just showing the cheat moves,” the former professional casino cheat wrote. “It is explaining why they work. It’s putting casino table games and surveillance staff in the shoes of professional casino cheats. It’s getting them inside the cheats’ heads.”

“I believe that if casino personnel understand how cheats think and how they use psychology to take control of personnel on the floor, they are much better equipped to defend their gaming tables against very skilled and professional casino-cheating teams,” he wrote.

Marcus will come to Maine for a four-day training, spending two days at each of the two casinos in the state — Oxford Casino in Oxford, and Hollywood Casino in Bangor.

The two casinos will be reimbursing the state for two-thirds of the training cost, and will be paying for and providing hotel rooms for Marcus during his stay.