US law enforcement have signed a non-prosecution agreement with Wynn Las Vegas (WLV), a prominent Las Vegas casino, regarding allegations of unlicensed money transmitting.
The casino, owned by NASDAQ-traded gaming group Wynn Resorts, has agreed to pay $130,131,645 to settle allegations that it conspired with worldwide unlicensed money transmitting businesses.
Officials allege that funds were transferred for the financial benefit of WLV. The Southern District of California of the US Attorney’s Office states that WLV has admitted to illegally using unregistered money transmitting businesses to circumvent the financial system.
“Casinos, like all businesses, will be held to account when they allow customers to evade US laws for the sake of profit,” said US Attorney Tara McGrath.
“Federal oversight seeks to prevent illegal funds from tainting legitimate businesses, ensuring that casinos offer a clean, thriving, and safe entertainment option.”
The investigation into the casino was a joint effort by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Investigators state that WLV ‘regulatory contracted with third party independent agents’ who acted as unlicensed money transmitting businesses for foreign gamblers.
This meant WLV was able to accept wagers from overseas bettors outside of the jurisdictions where it holds a licence. The alleged agents would then transfer gamblers’ funds through companies, bank accounts and other third-parties in Latin America and other regions, and ultimately in WLV-controlled bank accounts in California.
Funds in this account were then transferred into the WLV cage account and credited to individual patron accounts. The investigating agencies claim that this enabled foreign gamblers to evade foreign and US laws around monetary transfers and reporting.
Due to the complex and strict nature of gambling licensing, accepting bets in jurisdictions where a firm does not hold a licence is often a significant breach of licensing conditions and federal laws. In this case, investigators believe the $130m forfeited by WKV is the largest forfeiture by a casino based on admissions of criminal wrongdoing.
Christopher Davis, ActingSpecial Agent In Charge for HSI San Diego, said: “Of the many unique authorities HSI is able to enforce, understand and investigate complex financial crimes that lead to holding criminals accountable for their actions, is one that HSI does best.
“The success of this investigation is in part due to our partner agencies’ cooperation and dedication to seeing these long-term investigations through to bring justice to these companies and protect American financial institutions.”
