Melbourne‘s Crown Casino has been slapped with $120million in fines by the gaming regulator for breaches of its responsible service of gambling obligations.
The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) took disciplinary action against Crown for ongoing misconduct by imposing two fines on Monday.
A 2021 royal commission found the Southbank casino breached its code of conduct for the Responsible Service of Gambling over several years.
It found the casino failed to prevent gambling harm for its customers and also failed to comply with a statutory direction by the regulator.
© Provided by Daily Mail Crown Casino in Melbourne (above) has been fined $120million for allowing people to gamble for 24 hours straight and use plastic picks to simulate ‘automatic play’
The regulator fined Crown $100million for allowing people to gamble for more than 24 hours straight.
It fined the casino an additional $20million for allowing patrons to use plastic picks to simulate ‘automatic play’ on pokies machines.
Victoria Gambling and Casino Control Commission Chairwoman Fran Thorn said the Crown had failed in its ‘legal and moral obligation’ to keep gamblers safe.
‘The record fines totalling $120million that we have imposed on Crown today will send a powerful message to Crown that the Commission will not tolerate misconduct that exposes our community to increased risks of gambling-related harm,’ she said.
‘These were not isolated breaches. They were part of a pattern of extensive, sustained and systemic failures by Crown that spanned roughly 12 years.’
© Provided by Daily Mail The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission found in May the Crown Casino (above) had facilitated the illegal transfer of Chinese funds and fined it $80milion
It comes just a few months after the casino was fined $80million for allowing the transfer of illegal funds from China.
Between 2012 and 2016 China banned citizens from transferring more than US$50,000 a year to another jurisdiction.
The Crown sidestepped the ban by issuing Chinese nationals a voucher under the pretence of room services that could be exchanged for cash or chips for gambling.
The VGCCC in May found the illegal scheme enable Chinese nationals to access almost $164million at a $32million profit.