After last week Crown Resorts suffered a massive blow for being accused of tampering with poker machines and deliberately concealing potential illegal practices, now the Federal Parliament of Australia has been informed there was another whistleblower who alleged that the company was interfering with slot machines.
Andrew Wilkie, an independent Member of Parliament who has long been participating in campaigns against slot machines, called the Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to back a parliamentary inquiry against Crown Resorts.
One More Whistleblower Backs Allegations in Misconduct
According to the information revealed by MP Wilkie, the fourth individual who supported the allegations against one of the biggest casino operators in the country had provided names of Crown employees who told him to modify the pokies in a way that would increase the number of players’ losses. The list of staff’s names had already been given to the police.
The person also asked for a parliamentary inquiry on the issue, saying that the public needed to learn the truth. He also shared that he feared for his safety.
The country’s Prime Minister explained that gambling regulatory bodies, police and the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) were the competent authorities to investigate the allegations, saying that the afore-mentioned agencies were entitled with the necessary powers to carry such an investigation out – something that a parliamentary committee does not have.
The allegations raised by Mr. Wilkie are already being investigated by the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation (VCGLR), while the claims of money laundering practices are being investigated by the AUSTRAC.
Crown Resorts Faces Serious Accusations in Illegal Practices
According to last weeks’ allegations, Crown Resorts has been deliberately concealing possible money laundering practices at its largest casino venue. Reportedly, the state regulator has also known of the operator’s criminal behaviour, but has been covering it up.
As mentioned above, last week three former employees of Crown Resorts have accused the company in misconduct at its casino in Melbourne. Video statements of the three ex employees have been provided to the Australian Parliament by Mr. Wilkie, with all videos containing claims that the gambling operators breached financial disclosure laws. In addition, the three former staff members shared at the time that Crown Resorts failed to report certain incidents of domestic violence and drug taking by gamblers.
As mentioned above, the claims that the company has tampered with its Melbourne-based casino poker machines have not been the only ones faced by the operator. In addition, Crown Resorts has been accused of allowing the use of illegal drugs at the casino, knowingly failed to report domestic violence of gamblers. Local regulatory body AUSTRAC has also been blamed for covering up the illicit practices of the operator that has managed to avoid scrutiny that the regulator must have carried out on some money transactions amounting to more than $10,000.
Crown Resorts has denied all accusations and has even accused Mr. Wilkie of making allegations against the operator as part of certain political games on the territory of the country.
- Author
Olivia Cole
