Ousted Wynn Resorts Founder Steve Wynn Fined Again in Vegas
LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE:Steve Wynn, the founder and former boss of Wynn Resorts, is no longer active in the gaming industry, but it's still causing him trouble. Per a Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) announcement on Wednesday, he will pay $10 million in fines, accompanied by a pledge to abstain from any future engagement in the Nevada gaming sector.
Wynn Out of City He Helped Build
Assuming the settlement is granted approval by the Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC), potentially as soon as next week, it would effectively bring about the resolution of a prolonged legal conflict spanning four years between Wynn and state gaming authorities.
Wynn will be bound by the settlement, which forbids him from taking on any executive or managerial positions in a Nevada gaming company. However, he will still be permitted to possess up to 5% of an authorized gaming company's shares. NGCB Chairman Kirk Hendrick refrained from providing any remarks on the settlement until the agency makes its official announcement.
Hendrick and George Assad, an NGCB board member, inked the agreement, while Brittnie Watkins, another board member, abstained. She said the decision was due to her previous affiliation with a law firm that had represented Wynn, before she joined the board.
As part of the new agreement with the NGCB, Wynn has relinquished his opportunity for a public hearing. Nevertheless, should he violate any of the corrective actions, gaming regulators in Nevada reserve the option to nullify the agreement. They could then pursue disciplinary action against him, including new fines.
How Wynn Got Here
After stepping down from Wynn Resorts, disposing of his shares and relinquishing his gambling license in February 2018, Wynn asserted that the gambling authorities had no control over him. This decision came just a few weeks after a Wall Street Journal article uncovered a series of inappropriate behaviors spanning over 10 years.
The behavior included allegations of sexual misconduct and harassment made by female employees during his time as the chairman and CEO of Wynn. Company executives subsequently filed a total of five complaints in October 2019 with the intention of revoking Wynn's eligibility to hold casino licenses.
In November 2020, a judge made a ruling stating that Wynn's departure and the selling of his company effectively released him from the oversight of the NGCB and NGC. Nonetheless, the ruling was challenged in Nevada Supreme Court.
In March 2022, it overturned the initial verdict, asserting that the NGC had the legal obligation to consider the NGCB's decision before any court could weigh in. The commission then backed the board's authority over Wynn.
Wynn has repeatedly refuted the claims made against him. He now lives in Florida, and, according to Forbes, the 81-year-old man behind The Mirage, Treasure Island and Bellagio is worth $3.2 billion.
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