Women-beating allegations jeopardize LV man’s gaming license

John Wilen

Friday, Sept. 4, 1998 | 11:45 a.m.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board voted Thursday first to deny, then to refer back to its investigative staff, a limited gaming license application filed by the owners of Woody's Bar & Grill at 3101 W. Sahara.

The action means Woody's may have to shut down its 15 gaming machines at the end of the month.

Woody's owners, John Mesa and Lawrence Liang, have operated the machines under a limited gaming licence since March 1997. Gaming regulators structured that license to expire this month to give board investigators a chance to revisit allegations that Mesa exhibited what member Steve DuCharme termed "violent proclivities" toward women.

That license was granted in 1997 on a 2-1 vote, over the objection of board Chairman Bill Bible.

Since the March 1997 hearing, when board members voiced concerns that Mesa had broken a woman's jaw in a violent rage, Mesa was involved in an incident in which several witnesses alleged he kicked a woman repeatedly in the head and body outside of the Club Utopia nightclub, board members said.

Mesa and lawyers Sean McGowan and Michael Davidson vehemently denied the accusations, claiming Mesa was a victim of the woman's unwanted advances.

"Mesa was the victim here," Davidson said. "He was being physically assaulted."

By McGowan's account, Mesa was approached by the woman, a former girlfriend, and tried to leave the club when she began acting "rudely and abruptly." She pursued Mesa into the club parking lot and followed him to his car where "she fell to the ground," said McGowan.

The witnesses who said they saw Mesa kick the woman later recanted, as did the woman, said McGowan. He also disputed the accuracy of the jaw-breaking incident.

"Mr. Mesa did not break the woman's jaw in the first instance," McGowan said.

But board members did not buy the explanations.

"If you go back and look at Mr. Mesa's history ... the circumstances surrounding these violations are pretty brutal," said DuCharme. "There is a history here."

"He has a problem with hitting women, apparently," said board member C. Brian Harris.

The board voted to deny the license application, which would have extended the limited license granted 18 months ago. That license expires at the end of September. McGowan initially indicated that Mesa and Liang would appeal the decision to the Nevada Gaming Commission later this month.

But later in the board meeting, McGowan reappeared, asking board members to allow Mesa to sell his interest to Liang, and approve a license for Liang only. Board members, led by DuCharme, rejected this request. DuCharme said he would want to see the details of the transfer of interest before approving it.

Instead, the board agreed to refer the application back to its investigative staff. The move rescinded the earlier denial vote, giving Liang a chance to buy Mesa out and reapply as sole shareholder. But that application will not be processed before the end of the month, meaning Woody's will have no choice but to operate without gaming until a license is approved.

In other actions this week, the board:

--Approved billionaire Carl Icahn as president, chairman and controlling shareholder of Arizona Charlie's hotel-casino. Icahn took over the bankrupt resort by buying a majority of its publicly traded debt. When a loan to finance a reorganization plan put forth by former owner Becker Gaming fell through, Icahn became owner of Arizona Charlie's. Icahn's approval is preliminary; final approval is expected by the Nevada Gaming Commission later this month.

--Approved racetrack Hoosier Park LP, in Anderson, Ind., to participate in Nevada race books through Las Vegas Dissemination Co.

--Proceeded with a "call-forward" of Bernard Gilman and Kathleen Laskowski, partners in Las Vegas Holidays Inc. and Convention Connection Inc. Board members were concerned that Gilman, who has withdrawn gaming license applications four different times, was contracting to sell hotel rooms for casinos as part of his companies' efforts to sell travel packages to technology companies for the Comdex trade show. Nevada gaming laws allow the board to request any person who is involved in gaming or contracts with gaming companies to demonstrate their suitability to be associated with a gaming enterprise. By proceeding with the call-forward, the board is requiring Gilman to demonstrate his suitability as if he were applying for a gaming license.

--Rejected a request by Thomas Mackesy to withdraw his application for a restricted gaming license for Night Gallery, 3025 Las Vegas Blvd. South. Members said they wanted to question Mackesy on a number of issues before granting the withdrawl.

--Rejected a request by Brian Cleland and David Saffren that their application to be licensed as shareholders of BFD Las Vegas Inc., which does business as North Star Bar & Grill, 5150 Camino Al Norte, be withdrawn. The board also rejected Frederick Slark's application to be licensed as shareholder of the North Star. The applications were referred back to staff to give the board more time to review allegations that Saffren and Slark had engaged in illegal gambling. "I still can't figure out what's true and what's not true in this application," said member Harris. The board had indicated they were going to deny both applications; Jeff Silver, attorney for the North Star, requested the staff referral to avoid a denial.

--Approved Cheryl Ann Collins as executrix of the estate of Phyllis A. Rademacher, and as trustee of the Clarence H. and Phyllis A. Rademacher Revocable Family Trust. The two entities own 51 percent of the shares of Office 7 Lounge and Restaurant Inc., 2660 S. Maryland Parkway. However, the board referred back to staff a plan to transfer the shares to the control of Nicholas Tunis Jr., a move that would have made Tunis sole shareholder in the company. The board is investigating Tunis' background in connection with his ownership of a Henderson casino, and wants to complete that investigation before approving him as sole owner of Office 7.

--Approved key employee licenses for Anthony Castro Jr., lead slot floorman at United Coin Machine Co. route operations in the Bourbon Street Hotel, 120 E. Flamingo Road, and in Cal's Jackpot Casino, 3012 Griswold St.; Thomas Matthews, executive vice president, secretary and treasurer, and Joseph Murphy, vice president, at Anchor Gaming and Anchor Coin, 815 Pilot Road; Vernus Eller, director of food, at B & BB Inc., doing business as Virgin River Hotel and Casino in Mesquite; David Ross, vice president and general manager of the Barbary Coast hotel-casino, and management consultant at Michael J. Gaughan Airport Slot Concession Inc.; Patricia Ross, general manager at Michael J. Gaughan Airport Slot Concession Inc.; Darrell Luery, president and chief operating officer at Ruffin Gaming LLC, doing business as The New Frontier, 3120 Las Vegas Blvd. South; Timothy Barnett, general manager at the Mesquite Star hotel-casino, in Mesquite.

--Approved the transfer of a 49.04 percent interest in The Convenience Store & Deli, 820 E. Twain, from Gary M. Lee to Rubin M Shin.

--Approved the transfer of a 49 percent interest in Thumper's, 3870 E. Flamingo, from James and Elizabeth Spatafore to Frank Kaesemeyer.

--Approved restricted gaming licenses for: Goitom Hailu, owner of E-Z Market, 1109 E. Stewart, on the condition Hailu repays a $20,000 loan to a friend accused of sexually assaulting a minor in California; Anupal Cheema, owner of Liquor City, 5600 Spring Mountain Road; Green Valley Gaming Inc., doing business as House of Joy, 7380 S. Eastern Ave.; Dennis and Nicole Ewing, owners of a 7-Eleven store at 2339 N. Jones; Raymond Shapiro, the Shapiro Family Trust, Jerry Whitebrook, Thomas Dellavalle, William Hedderly and Deborah Hedderly, owners of Mountain Vista Mini Mart, 5685 Mountain Vista Road.

Also, Southwest Gaming Services Inc., doing business as the Harley Davidson Cafe, 3725 Las Vegas Blvd. South; Javier Barajas, owner of Red Rock Inn, 5350 W. Charleston; Kenneth Hopkins and Laurie Oliver, owners of Mad Dogs & Englishmen Pubs, 515 Las Vegas Blvd. South; Bhupinder Bhatti, owner of an Arco AM/PM Mini Mart at 1590 N. Lamb; Gerald and Mitsuko Simmons, owners of The Cadillac Grille, 2801 N. Tenaya Way; Ronald Glover, owner of Clean Machine West Laundromat, 4113 W. Sahara; Kyong Oh, owner of Oh's Convenience Store, 861 N. Nellis; Bassam Hanna, owner of Nellis Market, 3125 S. Nellis; Raymond Koerntgen, owner of Ramy Deli, 8524 W. Sahara; Green Valley Gaming, doing business as RG Liquors, 4080 Paradise, and as Bankok Boom Restaurant, 3111 S. Valley View; Rebel Slots, 901 N. Buffalo Drive; Anchor Coin, doing business at China Garden Seafood Restaurant, 5485 W. Sahara; Cardivan Co., doing business at Rite Aid stores at 8500 S. Eastern in Henderson, 7575 W. Vegas Drive, 2950 E. Desert Inn, 2905 S. Maryland Parkway, and at a City Stop, 971 S. Boulder Highway, in Henderson.

--Approved two new games: Super 9's Stud Poker, on trial at the Sahara hotel-casino; and Wild Hold'Em Fold'Em, on trial at the Riverside Resort in Primm, Buffalo Bill's in Primm and the Tahoe Biltmore.

--Upheld work permit suspensions for Marilyn Bennett, Richard Goshi, Paul Sweetland, Thomas Newman, Jerome Broome, Judy Na, Sergio Pereira and Michele Jaffey, all of Las Vegas. The board upheld administrative decisions to return the work cards of Myrna Caceres and Jimmie Fox, both of Las Vegas. Citing a long string of arrests, the board overturned an administrative decision to return the work card of Steven Jarezembowski.

--The board upheld administrative decisions denying payment to four players in casino-player disputes, including Jerry Downing's claim he won a $17,000 jackpot at the Riviera hotel-casino, Jim Carey's claim a $20,000 jackpot won at Palace Station should be increased to $40,000, Benjamin Jones' claim he won $1.05 million at Whiskey Pete's, and Sammie Crain's claim he won $6,800 at the Stardust hotel-casino.

All board actions are preliminary. Final action will be taken by the Nevada Gaming Commission later this month.

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