Husband who joked about his ex-wife contracting Ebola Is Thrown In Jail

Sick joke: Emanuel Smith, 60, was arrested and charged with causing panic after telling a casino employee in Cleveland that he was gambling to avoid his Ebola-stricken wife at home

A 60-year-old Ohio man has learned the hard way that Ebola is not a laughing matter.

Emanuel Smith was arrested Wednesday on a charge of inducing panic after he told a dealer at the Horseshoe Casino in Cleveland that his wife has contracted the deadly virus.

According to the Ohio Casino Commission, the gambler went into further dealer, claiming that his spouse traveled to Cleveland from the Ebola-stricken region of West Africa, and that he was gambling to avoid seeing her.

Ohio officials later determined that Smith, who is divorced, and his ex-wife do not have Ebola and have not been to West Africa recently.

Smith's gallows humor 'caused panic' in the casino, a portion of which had to be temporarily closed down resulting in 'a large financial loss' for the owners, according to court filings cited by The Smoking Gun.