Individuals not named in Venetian complaint

Thursday, Feb. 26, 2004 | 11:05 a.m.

Don't look for the names of The Venetian executives responsible for rigging three February 2002 contests for high-rolling gamblers in the complaint and settlement agreement the megaresort and the Gaming Control Board agreed to Tuesday.

Though The Venetian admitted in the settlement agreement that its executives faked three drawings and awarded a $48,000 Mercedes-Benz sport utility vehicle as well as a $20,000 chip and a $10,000 chip to prearranged winners, and that those bosses were later fired, those executive's names will not be released by regulators or the property.

The settlement, in which The Venetian executives admit the allegations in nine of the 12 counts listed in the complaint and admit the Nevada Gaming Commission could determine regulatory violations occurred in the other three counts, calls on the property to pay a fine of $663,000 and pay board expenses of $337,000, for a total of $1 million.

Control Board Chairman Dennis Neilander said the agency, the industry's tax collector and policeman, has a policy against releasing the names of casino employees whose actions result in disciplinary action for their casino resorts.

The Venetian declined Wednesday to comment on the complaint and settlement, relying instead on a statement issued by the assistant to The Venetian owner Sheldon Adelson, and property spokesman Ron Reese said the property won't release the names of the executives cited in the complaint.

"Our policy is that we normally don't release the employees' names unless we include them in the (disciplinary complaint)," Neilander said.

The Venetian statement blamed the rigged promotional drawings on "certain rogue employees, who violated company policy and ethical standards."

The contest rigging was discovered "and The Venetian's response was immediate and unequivocal; four employees, including two senior executives, were suspended and subsequently terminated without severance," the statement noted.

Deutsche Banc casino equity analyst Marc Falcone said the $1 million fine and expense check The Venetian will likely have to write is insignificant, and said the contest rigging and other charges won't harm the property's business.

"The events were a couple of years ago and they're rather isolated events," Falcone said. "This will force The Venetian management to be more diligent, but demand for Las Vegas is enormous right now, so I don't see much impact on their business."

Neilander declined to comment on the facts the board listed in the complaint, noting that the settlement still has to be approved by the Gaming Commission at its March 18 meeting in Las Vegas, but was willing to characterize the seriousness with which he views the charges against The Venetian.

"The reason the complaint is so serious is that it concerns activity that could erode the public's confidence in gaming," Neilander said. "That is one of (our) most important regulatory concerns."