The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board Approved Casino Fines Totaling $82,500

HARRISBURG, Pa., Nov. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board today levied fines totaling $82,500 against four casinos for various violations.

The fines were the result of Board approvals at its public meeting of consent agreements between the PGCB's Office of Enforcement Counsel and:

• Holdings Acquisitions Co. LP, operator of the Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh, which was fined $30,000 for two separate violations, one involving holding poker tournaments with unauthorized rules and a second for failing to prevent underage gambling;
• SugarHouse HSP Gaming, LP, operator of the SugarHouse Casino in Philadelphia, which was fined $22,500 for violations related to the Board's Self-Exclusion List;
• Sands Bethworks Gaming, LLC, operator of the Sands Casino Resort in Northampton County, which was fined $22,500 for violations involving the play of table games; and,
• Mount Airy #1, LLC, operator of the Mount Airy Casino Resort in Monroe County, which was fined $7,500 for violations involving the play of table games.

Details

The larger fine approved against Holdings Acquisitions Co. LP was $20,000 and stemmed from a decision to hold two poker tournaments at the Rivers Casino that utilized a rule variation which lacked the necessary approval from the PGCB.

The second approved fine involving Holdings Acquisitions Co. LP was $10,000 for failing to prevent a 20-year-old female to gain access to the Rivers Casino gaming floor and gamble at both table games and a slot machine.

SugarHouse HSP Gaming, LP received a fine of $22,500 for three instances where individuals on the PGCB's problem gambler assistance program, the Voluntary Self-Exclusion List, were not prevented access to the gaming floor, to gamble and, in one of the incidents, to cash personal checks. Gaming facilities in the Commonwealth must refuse wagers from, and deny gaming privileges, including check cashing and cash advances, to individuals who are on the Self-Exclusion List.  

A $22,500 fine was also levied against Sands Bethworks Gaming, LLC for two instances in which table games play was compromised when personnel of the Sands Casino Bethlehem Resort did not follow approved procedures.

Finally, the fine against Mount Airy #1, LLC of $7,500 was the result of one instance in which table games play was compromised when personnel of the Mount Airy Casino Resort did not follow approved procedures.

The next meeting of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board is scheduled for 10:00 a.m., Wednesday, December 14, 2016 in the PGCB's Public Hearing Room located on the second floor of Strawberry Square in Harrisburg. 

About the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board:
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board was established in 2004 and is tasked to oversee all aspects of the state's casino industry. There are 10 stand-alone and racetrack casinos in operation, along with the two smaller resort casinos. These facilities collectively employ 18,000 people and annually generate more than $1.4 billion in tax revenue from slot machine and table games play. The largest portion of that money is used for property tax reduction to all Pennsylvania homeowners with additional tax revenue going to the horse racing industry, economic development projects, fire companies, county fairs, water and sewer projects, the Commonwealth's General Fund, and to local governments that host casinos.

Additional information about both the PGCB's regulatory efforts and Pennsylvania's casino gaming industry can be found at www.gamingcontrolboard.pa.gov. You can also follow the agency on Twitter by choosing @PAGamingControl.

CONTACTS: Doug Harbach or Richard McGarvey   
(717) 346-8321  

SOURCE Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board