Last week, the Venetian Hotel and Casino reached a settlement with the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB), agreeing to pay a $7.2 million penalty for anti-money laundering (AML) violations associated with illegal bookmaker Mathew Bowyer. This case represents a troubling chapter in the final decade of Las Vegas Sands, which was once the world's largest casino operator.
Sands marked its exit from the Las Vegas market when it sold the Venetian to Apollo Global Management in 2021. After this sale, Sands shifted its focus entirely to operations in Macau and Singapore, following a stalled expansion attempt in Texas and New York. Although Sands maintains its headquarters in Las Vegas, it has divested its casinos, and its digital branch, which was also based in the city, was closed last year.
Bowyer has been a prominent figure in the world of illegal sports betting, accumulating $34 million in AML fines across various Las Vegas venues. His history with the Venetian dates back to its opening in 1999, but significant violations reportedly occurred between 2019 and 2021, during the latter part of Sands' ownership.
The NGCB's investigation found that the Venetian failed to properly verify Bowyer's source of funds starting in 2019. It wasn’t until 2024, long after Apollo had taken over, that Bowyer was banned from the casino. During the span between 2019 and 2021, he reportedly visited the Venetian 30 times, depositing $22.3 million and losing $3.6 million. The NGCB's findings add to an ongoing series of negative incidents linked to Sands prior to the Venetian sale.
The NGCB has refrained from further comments while the matter awaits consideration by the Nevada Gaming Commission, and Sands did not respond to requests for comment.
Bowyer’s case is reminiscent of another scandal involving Zhenli Ye Gon, an alleged drug trafficker. When Gon frequented the Venetian in the early 2000s, he was noted as the largest all-cash gambler the casino had ever encountered, according to federal prosecutors.
Sands failed to adequately vet Gon and his funds during that time, neglecting to file suspicious activity reports despite Gon transferring about $45 million and cashing $13 million in cheques at the Venetian from 2005 to 2007. Not until after this period, in April 2007, did Sands submit its first suspicious activity reports regarding Gon.
Ultimately, Sands forfeited $47.4 million to the US government in 2013 in relation to the Gon case, averting criminal charges. At that time, the company stated it had made extensive efforts to enhance its compliance program, which helped it secure a non-prosecution agreement.
In the wake of the Gon case, it was revealed that former Sands founder Sheldon Adelson may have sought assistance from political figures in securing favorable treatment. Emails disclosed by journalist Jon Ralston indicated that Harry Reid, the former Senate majority leader, played a role in helping Sands navigate the legal challenges stemming from the Gon case.
Reid’s deputy noted the day the forfeiture was announced that it wouldn’t have happened without Reid’s intervention.
Compounding these issues, Sands faced yet another scandal involving its relationships with Nevada politics. In 2010, former Sands China CEO Steven Jacobs brought a wrongful termination lawsuit against the company, claiming Adelson pressured him to leverage relationships with Chinese officials.
Additionally, between 2015 and 2016, Sands sought the NGCB's support in filing an amicus brief regarding the lawsuit. After the NGCB declined, then-Attorney General Adam Laxalt attempted to persuade the board, which led to an extensive ethics investigation when the conversation was secretly recorded.
2016 presented a difficult year financially for Sands. In two months alone, the company settled the Jacobs lawsuit for more than $75 million, paid a $2 million fine to Nevada regulators related to the Gon case, and incurred an additional $9 million fine from the Securities and Exchange Commission for accounting discrepancies related to a Chinese consultant, stating Sands had inaccurately recorded $62 million in payments to the consultant to obscure the company's involvement in certain transactions.
Following the SEC fine, Adelson asserted that Sands was dedicated to developing a comprehensive compliance program built on existing policies.
