Pennsylvania Gaming Regulator Punishes Casino, Gamblers in Latest Crackdown
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) has imposed a fine of $100,000 on Stadium Casino RE, LLC, the operator of Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia, for violations of sports wagering regulations. It's also taken action against 11 gamblers, giving them permanent bans over fraudulent activity.
The Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia at night. (Source: The Philadelphia Enquirer)
LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE:This enforcement action comes after the PGCB's Office of Enforcement Counsel discovered that Live! Casino accepted sports wagers via telephone, a method not authorized under the state's gaming laws. The fine was announced following a PGCB press release detailing the regulatory breach. According to the announcement, employees of the Live! Casino Sportsbook engaged in the practice of accepting "proxy wagers," which involved placing bets on behalf of a patron who was not physically present in the casino.
Over the course of eight days, 15 such wagers were placed, amounting to a total of $287,421. The Pennsylvania Gaming Act expressly forbids the acceptance of wagers from individuals other than the one placing the bet, thereby making the actions of the employees a clear violation of state law.
In response to these infractions, Live! Casino took decisive action by terminating the employment of the three team members who were found to have accepted and placed the proxy wagers.
The PGCB also took action against bettor for whom the wagers were placed. The unnamed individual has been placed on the regulator's Involuntary Exclusion list, which means he or she can no longer gamble or bet anywhere in Pennsylvania.More Business News
PGCB Bans Gamblers for Fraud
In a related development, the PGCB has also approved the recommendation of its Office of Enforcement Counsel to place 11 individuals on the iGaming Involuntary Exclusion List. These individuals were found to have engaged in fraudulent activities involving iGaming accounts.
The press release specified two primary methods used by the individuals in question. The first involved the creation of an iGaming account using another person's name and identification information. This constitutes identity theft and a clear breach of security protocols within the iGaming system.
The second method involved fraudulent activity related to depositing funds into an iGaming account. Notably, the individual involved did not engage in any actual gambling activity. However, they managed to exploit the system and withdraw funds directly into their personal bank account.
The fraudulent conduct of the individuals involved an array of schemes of identity theft and unauthorized financial transactions. This included activity such as illegally requesting and receiving chargebacks amounting to $5,150, creating two online accounts using other individuals' personal information, setting up fraudulent accounts and withdrawing funds into a personal bank account, attempting to withdraw money from another's account, withdrawing various amounts from different accounts created using stolen identities and illegal chargebacks.
The cumulative fraudulent withdrawals and chargebacks involved significant amounts of money, indicating a systematic and extensive identity theft operation.
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