Resorts World could face massive fines in alleged money laundering case
The Nevada Gaming Control Board has recently initiated a related probe involving a number of casinos, including Resorts World.
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Three gamblers under federal investigation for their ties to illegal sports betting rings that allegedly laundered money through Las Vegas casinos lost just under $24 million at Resorts World alone since the casino opened less than three years ago, according to sources who asked not to be identified in order to provide confidential gambler information.
The revelation could prove costly for Resorts World, which is being investigated by federal authorities from California, as first reported last year by the Current. Corporate fines are often levied by federal authorities as a means of divesting companies of ill-gotten gains.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board has recently initiated a related probe involving a number of casinos, according to individuals who have been interviewed.
Resorts World has not been charged with wrongdoing. General Counsel Gerald Gardner and a public relations firm hired by the company declined to speak on the record, other than to say the company is cooperating with investigators.
Damien LeForbes, who is being investigated by federal authorities in connection with illegal sports betting, racked up $12.3 million in losses during close to four dozen trips to Resorts World, according to sources.
A casino record obtained by the Current reveals Resorts World turned over a bad check for $2.5 million from LeForbes to the Clark County District Attorney for prosecution, however, no case has been filed against the gambler. His Las Vegas attorney, David Chesnoff, declined to comment. District Attorney Steve Wolfson did not respond to requests for comment.
LeForbes also owes $1 million to the Venetian, according to a source at that casino. That marker has also been sent to the District Attorney, according to the source, however no case has been filed.
The gambler declined to comment on the record when contacted by phone Monday.
Ryan Boyajian, a regular on the Real Housewives of Orange County and associate of admitted illegal bookie Matt Bowyer, lost $3.7 million at Resorts World tables during 21 trips.
“There’s an investigation and I don’t want to compromise it,” Boyajian’s attorney Steven Katzman told the Current via phone Monday. Katzman confirmed Boyajian and Bowyer have been acquainted for years.
Bowyer, who admitted through his attorney to taking sports bets from Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter of baseball star Shohei Ohtani, made 32 trips to Resorts World, the Current learned. ESPN reported earlier this month that Bowyer lost $7.9 million at the casino between 2022 and 2023.
Mizuhara, who stole close to $17 million from Ohtani’s bank account in order to fuel his gambling habit and pay off millions of dollars in debt, has entered a plea deal with federal authorities.
Some of Mizuhara’s payments to Bowyer, up to $500,000 a week, were sent to Boyajian and subsequently deposited in his gambling account at Resorts World, according to ESPN.
Illegal bookmakers are known to launder money by wiring ill-gotten gains to casinos, where they later withdraw the bulk of the funds.
“I don’t know what kind of money launderers blow it all at the tables,” said one source who asked not to be named.
Bowyer, Boyajian and LeForbes have not been charged with any crimes.
Bowyer’s California home was raided last October by the same federal authorities who investigated former MGM Grand and Resorts World president Scott Sibella. A federal judge sentenced Sibella earlier this month to one year probation and a $9,500 fine for failing to ensure MGM filed a suspicious transaction report for a cash payment from gambler Wayne Nix, who has admitted to being an illegal bookmaker and is awaiting sentencing.
MGM Resorts agreed to pay federal authorities $7.5 million to avoid prosecution in the case, which included violations at MGM Grand and Cosmopolitan.
The investigation of Nix, Sibella and his former employers has widened to include other resorts and other alleged illegal bookmakers, including Bowyer and LeForbes. A dozen individuals have been charged or entered plea agreements in connection with the case, according to federal authorities.
On the same day federal agents raided Bowyer’s home, they confiscated the phone of Las Vegan Jennifer Belcastro, an independent representative who served as Bowyer’s host for his first trip to Resorts World.
Resorts World and state regulators subsequently approved Bowyer’s wife to represent her husband, sources say, an arrangement that allowed the couple to recoup a percentage of Bowyer’s losses.
Outside representatives are compensated on a trip-by-trip basis determined by their customer’s level of play and/or the amount lost per trip. They must be registered with the state and undergo a background check, according to Gaming Control Board spokesman Michael Lawton.
“Additionally larger companies with compliance plans are required to conduct their own due diligence for Independent Agents,” Lawton said.
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