The Nevada Gaming Control Board Friday announced a proposed stipulation for settlement, in which MGM Resorts International will be fined $8.5 million for its dealings with an illegal bookmaker in a case that’s costing the company nearly $16 million combined.
The proposed settlement will be considered Thursday at the Nevada Gaming Commission meeting.
The case centers on illegal bookmaker Wayne Nix and involves the MGM Grand and the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, which wasn’t owned by MGM at the time. The Gaming Control Board posted the 72-page complaint and proposed disposition of the case on its website late Thursday; MGM Grand is accused of taking more than $4 million in cash from Nix placing wagers.
The $8.5 fine is on top of a $6.52 million fine the MGM Grand paid the federal government as part of a non-prosecution agreement. The Cosmopolitan, which had been under previous ownership centering around the allegations, also paid a $928,600 fine to the federal government as part of a similar agreement. By 2020, the federal complaint said the Cosmopolitan, which MGM acquired in 2021, had taken $928,600 in wagers.
“The complaint alleges unsuitable methods of operation arising from the activities of illegal bookmaker Wayne Nix, which were described in non-prosecution agreements between the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Central District of California and MGM Grand and The Cosmopolitan,” the Gaming Control Board said in their statement Friday morning. “Additionally, the complaint details the activities of another illegal bookmaker, Matthew Bowyer, which were discovered by the Nevada Gaming Control Board during the course of the investigation. The complaint’s allegations center on the actions and failures and failures of MGM Resorts International’s anti-money laundering program. The Nevada Gaming Control Board’s extensive and lengthy investigative process included cooperation from MGM’s executives and employees.”
The MGM Grand case centers on its former COO and President Scott Sibella, who in December 2023 pleaded guilty to federal charges of failing to report Nix and had his license revoked by the Nevada Gaming Commission in December.
The federal government charged him with not knowing the source of a customer’s funds and failing to file a suspicious activity report (SAR) in allegations dating to 2018. A federal judge sentenced Sibella to one year’s probation and fined him $9,500.
The proposed settlement details numerous remedial measures implemented at MGM and its subsidiary properties, the Gaming Control Board said. The majority of the conditions and remediations focus on enhancements to MGM’s AML program, as well as additional training and employee awareness of AML requirements.
Line-level employees who interact with casino customers, such as cage cashiers, table-game dealers, and guest representatives on the casino floor are now mandated to report suspicious consumer activity through the company’s ethics website.
