PGCB Issues New Fines, Revokes Sportsbook Employees Licenses in April

The PGCB has fined Mount Airy Casino Resort $120,000 this week, also revoking the licenses of three employees at Live! Philadelphia’s Sportsbook. The people in question were accused of accepting bets that were not authorized and ended up harming the property with $95,000 in financial losses.

PGCB Takes Range of Enforcement Actions

The Wednesday meeting of the PGCB resulted in 12 individuals being placed on the involuntary exclusion list, which usually features patrons and gamblers who have committed offenses on the grounds of casinos, and most commonly child endangerment by leaving minors unattended in cars outside of the casinos.

A total of $147,500 in casino fines was issued to three properties. Mount Airy was sanctioned because of a failure to provide the regulator with internal audit documents that concerned the period between 2018 and 2021. The audits were missing, and they were considered to be a considerable shortcoming on the part of the casino.

Attorney Adrian King Jr who represented the property attempted to defend the casino by explaining that the reason the documents were missing was due to a technical problem. The seven-member board explained that this was “unacceptable” and that contingencies must have been put in place to ensure that important documentation would be safeguarded against such events.

Following the issue, Mount Airy had taken the necessary measures to ensure that such oversights do not happen, replacing its CFO and general manager, assuring that the property is prepared to weather such developments in the future and ensuring it does not miss a regulatory standard from then on.

Conspiracies That Harmed the Casino

Other casinos were also fined. Mohegan Pennsylvania for example had to pay $20,000 for promoting employees in positions that they were not licensed to hold under state licenses. Rivers Philadelphia got a $7,500 fine for not notifying the regulator to know about a patron who cheated at Mississippi Stud by marking the cards. The board also acted against one sportsbook supervisor, Gianno Longo and two ex-ticket writers – Ryan Hanley and Omar Muhammad who worked at Live! Philadelphia.

The trio placed three separate wagers on behalf of a customer, Rocco Giunta, who did not upfront the money being wagered – $37,500, $37,500 and $20,000 respectively for each of the three bets – and then refused to pay when the bets ended up in losses. The trio had contended during an internal investigation at the Live! Philadelphia that they were trying to offer good customer service, but in reality, they were tipped to accept the wagers without an upfront payment.

The PGCB has been very active in enforcing state standards and ensuring that casinos are similarly toeing the regulatory line.