Las Vegas Strip Casino Accused of Hosting Criminals
Resorts World executives ignored signs that some of its high-rolling gamblers were involved in illegal betting, Nevada regulator alleges
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Executives at the Resorts World casino on the Las Vegas Strip have been accused of allowing illegal sports-betting bookies and others with ties to organized crime to gamble at the property.
Investigators with the Nevada Gaming Control Board, which oversees the state’s casino industry, said in a complaint filed Thursday that Resorts World executives ignored signs that some of its high-rolling customers were gambling with proceeds from illegal activities in violation of anti-money-laundering regulations.
The accusations coincide with a federal investigation into illegal sports-betting operations that recently ensnared baseball star Shohei Ohtani ’s longtime interpreter Ippei Mizuhara .
The casino’s alleged practice of allowing gamblers who had criminal ties to spend money there created “the perception and/or reality that Resorts World is an avenue to launder funds derived from illegal activity,” damaging the reputation of the state’s gambling industry, investigators said.
“We are committed to doing business with the utmost integrity and in compliance with applicable laws and industry guidelines,” Resorts World Las Vegas said in a statement Thursday. The company said it has been “actively communicating” with the Gaming Control Board to resolve the matter.
The $4.3 billion casino, which opened in 2021, is part of Malaysia’s Genting Berhad, which has other casinos and entertainment properties around the world.
The complaint points to Mathew Bowyer , an illegal bookmaker who gambled away more than $7.9 million at Resorts World between February 2022 and October 2023.
One of Bowyer’s clients was Mizuhara, the Japanese language interpreter for Ohtani. Prosecutors allege that Mizuhara stole nearly $17 million from the baseball player to pay off gambling debts. He agreed to plead guilty in federal court to bank fraud and subscribing to a false tax return.
Resorts World hosts, who cater to high-rollers, showered Bowyer with private jet flights, gifts and promotional chips to keep him spending at the casino, despite knowledge that he was involved in illegal sports betting, according to the complaint. The executives failed to verify the source of Bowyer’s funds, as required under its own anti-money-laundering policies.
Bowyer was banned from Resorts World after federal authorities executed a search warrant at his home in October.
He has since pleaded guilty in federal court to operating an illegal gambling business, money laundering and filing a false tax return. His gambling operation involved at times more than 700 bettors, and he employed agents who were sometimes paid with casino chips, according to prosecutors. An attorney for Bowyer declined to comment.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board recommended that state gambling regulators issue a fine against Resorts World and take disciplinary action against the casino’s gambling license. The Gaming Control Board is overseen by the Nevada Gaming Commission, which takes action on the body’s recommendations.
The complaint also says Resorts World allowed another suspected bookie and two convicted criminals to gamble on the property, including extending credit to play.
Illegal bookies who become gambling patrons have become a threat on the Strip. Earlier this year, longtime Las Vegas executive Scott Sibella pleaded guilty in federal court to allowing illegal sports-betting bookie Wayne Nix to gamble at the MGM Grand while Sibella was president of that casino.
After leaving the MGM Grand, Sibella became president of Resorts World in 2019, a role he left last year.
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Starbucks is making another major leadership change just one week after new CEO Brian Niccol started his job.
Michael Conway, the 58-year-old coffee chain’s head of North America, will be retiring at the end of November, according to a Monday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The decision came only six months after Conway took on the job. His position won’t be filled. Instead, the company plans to seek candidates for a new role in charge of Starbucks’ global branding.
The chief brand officer role will have responsibilities across product, marketing, digital, customer insights, creative and store concepts.
“Recognizing the unmatched capabilities of the Starbucks team and seeing the energy and enthusiasm for Brian’s early vision, I could not think of a better time to begin my transition towards retirement,” wrote Conway in a statement.
Conway has been at Starbucks for more than a decade, and was promoted to his current job—a newly created role—back in March, as part of the company’s structural leadership change under former CEO Laxman Narasimhan.
The coffee giant has been struggling with weaker sales in recent quarters, as it faces not only macroeconomic headwinds, but also operational, branding, and product development challenges.
Narasimhan was taking many moves to turn around the business, but faced increasing pressure from the board, shareholders, and activist investors.
One month ago, Starbucks ousted Narasimhan and appointed Brian Niccol, the former CEO at Chipotle, as its top executive. The stock has since jumped 20% in a show of faith for Niccol, who started at Starbucks last week.
When he was at Chipotle, Niccol made a few executive hires that were key to the company’s turnaround.
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