Wynn Resorts is forfeiting $130m to the Department of Justice over the unlicensed transmission of money and failure to properly report transactions. [Image: Shutterstock.com]
Bringing the matter to a close
Wynn Resorts has agreed to forfeit $130m to the US Department of Justice (DOJ) as part of a “non-prosecution agreement” regarding a decade-long case relating to unlicensed global money transmitting.
Justice Department didn’t pursue criminal charges in the case
The company noted on Friday that this is not a fine and the money will come through the funds related to the payments in question. The Justice Department didn’t pursue criminal charges in the case, which dates back to 2014. Mitigating factors included the casino company’s cooperation in the case and the historical element of the payments.
Wynn Resorts also rolled out extensive improvements to its compliance systems to ensure something similar doesn’t happen again.
No meager sum
It is the largest payment that a casino company in Nevada has made to the DOJ, significantly surpassing the $47.4m settlement from Las Vegas Sands in 2013 in a money laundering case.
The main issue related to the Wynn Las Vegas property, with investigators discovering disguised transactions at the property involving former agents, employees, and some patrons. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Wynn Resorts said that the actions of the individuals under scrutiny “date back many years and violated Wynn’s compliance policies and procedures.”
The payment transmission process at Wynn’s customers avoided US and overseas laws relating to money transfers and the reporting of transactions.
Talking about the case, US Attorney Tara McGrath said: “Casinos, like all businesses, will be held to account when they allow customers to evade U.S. laws for the sake of profit.”
Another settlement
In the same SEC filing, Wynn Resorts also revealed that it settled a shareholder class action lawsuit concerning the expenses of key management figures surrounding the sexual misconduct allegations against the company’s founder and former CEO Steve Wynn. The mogul stood down from his role and sold his stock when the allegations came to light.
The company did not reveal the size of this settlement, just saying that all claims against the former and current executives and directors are now concluded.
