Areas of Expertise
4008 stories by Philip Conneller
COVID-19 Cases Present at California Casino Early in Pandemic, Lawsuit Shows
COVID-19 was spreading among employees and patrons of the Jamul Casino, San Diego County, in early March. A fact that was not reported to the public according to a lawsuit filed by the Jamul Indian Village Development Corp. against its insurance company,...
Offshore Sportsbook 5Dimes Quits US Market, May Plan to Legalize
The 5Dimes online sportsbook has for years served the US market illegally from Costa Rica. But now it appears to be trying to make a clean break of it. The company announced suddenly on Monday that it would stop taking bets from...
Mike Sexton Dead at 72, Tributes Pour in for Much-Loved Poker Legend
Poker player and commentator Mike Sexton has lost his battle with cancer. Sexton's friend, the player and tournament director Linda Johnson, reported that he passed away peacefully at home in Las Vegas on Sunday. The 72-year-old Poker Hall of Famer was suffering...
Steve Wynn Defamation Case Against Former Hairstylist Thrown Out of Court
A former Wynn Resorts hairstylist has successfully defeated a defamation suit brought against him by his former boss, the disgraced casino mogul Steve Wynn. Jorgen Nielsen, originally from Denmark, was the artistic director of the salon at the Wynn Las Vegas and...
Big Fish Games Lays Off Staff as Judge Approves $155 Million Class Action Settlement for Former Players
Social casino developer Big Fish Games is expected to lay off 250 staff members as part of a restructuring process as it downsizes, according to a staff memo dated Tuesday, Sept. 1. This is the second round of layoffs in as many...
Former Crown Resorts Exec Jason O’Connor, Once Jailed in China for ‘Gambling Crimes,’ Finally Breaks Silence
Jason O’Connor, the former executive vice president of Crown Resort’s VIP International division, has spoken publicly for the first time about his arrest and imprisonment in China in 2016 for “gambling crimes.” O’Connor was among 19 employees and former employees of the...
Maltese Casino Owner Murdered Journalist to Suppress Truth Over Power Station Deal, Cops Say
Maltese anti-corruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia was murdered because she was about to uncover details of a corrupt government contract that benefited Malta’s biggest casino owner. That’s according to Maltese police, who said this week they are working on the assumption that...
Florida Gamblers Sue Feds After DEA Seizes $43,000 in Civil Forfeiture Cash Grab
A Florida couple is suing the Drug Enforcement Administration after the agency seized $43,000 in cash as they traveled to a casino reopening in North Carolina. Stacy Jones and her husband said the federal agency had no reason to seize their cash...
Hollywood Exec Ron Meyer is ‘Biggest Craps Player Ever,’ Lost Over $100M, Sources Claim
Someone appears to have it in for former Hollywood executive Ron Meyer. Earlier this month, the 75-year-old resigned from his $25 million-a-year job at Universal after he was purportedly blackmailed about an affair he had in 2012 with the 20-year-old British actress...
Crown Resorts Bank Accounts Breached AML Rules, Used by Criminals, Inquiry Hears
Two bank accounts controlled by Crown Resorts for the discreet use of VIP clients were not supervised by the Australian casino giant’s anti-money-laundering (AML) teams, an inquiry in Sydney has learned. ANZ and Commonwealth banks eventually shut down the two accounts because...