A former prime government for main Las Vegas casinos was given a yr of probation Wednesday after admitting he allowed an unlawful bookmaker to gamble tens of millions of {dollars} on the MGM Grand and repay money owed in money.
Scott Sibella pleaded responsible in January to violating federal anti-money laundering guidelines that required the on line casino to file studies of suspicious transactions. His sentence was handed down in federal courtroom by U.S. District Decide Dolly Gee, who additionally ordered Sibella to pay a advantageous of $9,500. Gee took into consideration that Sibella, 61, took duty for his actions, cooperated with investigators, and had no earlier felony historical past.
Sibella’s attorneys had requested the choose to think about probation. They submitted testimonial letters of assist, together with one from Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill, the elected head of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Division.
The MGM Grand and close by Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas beforehand settled a associated case stemming from a U.S. Justice Division cash laundering probe. The resorts agreed to pay a mixed $7.45 million, undergo an exterior evaluate and step up their anti-money laundering compliance packages.
Individually, Nevada on line casino regulators are contemplating revoking or suspending Sibella’s state playing license and fining him as much as $750,000. A criticism filed April 30 by state Gaming Management Board investigators has not but been thought of by the Nevada Gaming Fee.
The bookmaker central to Sibella’s case, Wayne Nix, is a former minor league baseball participant who lives in Newport Coast, California. He’s awaiting sentencing after pleading responsible in April 2022 to working an unlawful playing enterprise and submitting a false tax return.
Based on his plea settlement with the federal government, Sibella allowed Nix to gamble at MGM Grand and affiliated properties with illicit proceeds generated from the unlawful playing enterprise with out notifying the casinos’ compliance division.
Sibella instructed federal investigators in January 2022 “that he had ‘heard that Nix was within the reserving enterprise’ and he ‘couldn’t work out how he had all the cash he gambled with.’”
“I didn’t wish to know due to my place,” Sibella instructed investigators. “I keep out of it. If we all know, we are able to’t permit them to gamble. I didn’t ask, I didn’t wish to know I suppose as a result of he wasn’t doing something to cheat the on line casino.”
Sibella was president and chief working officer of the MGM Grand for eight years after which president of Resorts World Las Vegas till 2023.
His sentencing comes because the Justice Division undertakes a wide-ranging investigation into unlawful sports activities playing operations in Southern California laundering cash by way of Las Vegas casinos. Probably the most notable case includes Ippei Mizuhara, Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter. Federal prosecutors say Mizuhara transferred cash he stole from the Japanese famous person in a scheme to repay money owed to unlawful bookmakers.
Sibella held prime government positions at The Mirage and Treasure Island casinos on the Las Vegas Strip earlier than changing into president of the greater than 6,800-room MGM Grand in 2011. He left the corporate in February 2019 and joined Resorts World Las Vegas earlier than Malaysia-based Genting Group opened the $4.3 billion, 66-floor resort in June 2021.
Sibella was dismissed by Resorts World in September 2023 after the corporate mentioned he “violated firm insurance policies and the phrases of his employment.”
