Venetian becomes latest Bowyer AML culprit in Las Vegas, agrees to $7.2 million fine

Convicted illegal bookmaker Mathew Bowyer is continuing to wreak havoc on the Las Vegas Strip long after his exclusion from state casinos, with the Venetian agreeing to a $7.2 million fine for Bowyer-related anti-money laundering violations.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board filed the stipulated settlement agreement as well as an accompanying four-count complaint on 25 June. News of the fine was first reported by the Nevada Independent.

This latest Bowyer-related AML investigation is nearly identical to those involving Resorts World Las Vegas , MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment last year. Including the Venetian, all four failed to properly substantiate Bowyer’s source of funds. Additionally, all four subsequently failed to ban him despite having suspicions or, in some cases, direct knowledge of his illegal bookmaking activities.

Bowyer pleaded guilty to charges related to money laundering and filing false tax returns in August 2024 and has since been released from federal prison. He was added to Nevada’s “black book” , or banned patrons list, in April, an inclusion that may prohibit him from entering a statewide casino for life.

According to the complaint, Bowyer gambled at the Venetian from 1999-2024, although the investigation centred primarily on the period of 2019-2024. That window spans the casino’s current owner, Apollo Global Management, as well as its previous owner Las Vegas Sands. Apollo purchased the operations of the Venetian from Sands for $2.25 billion in 2021, with the transaction closing in early 2022.

Representatives from the Venetian and NGCB indicated they won’t comment until the matter is heard by the Nevada Gaming Commission 20 August. Sands declined to comment.

Venetian admits wrongdoing

The stipulated settlement agreement lists the $7.2 million fine as well as seven AML-related licence conditions agreed to by the Venetian. These include additional employee trainings, periodic reviews of its AML protocols and frequent collaboration with the board. The casino’s “AML policy shall be revised and enhanced as appropriate and in compliance with applicable laws and regulations”, the settlement says.

The inspiration for the fine amount appears to be related to the casino’s profits off of Bowyer. Per the complaint, Bowyer made some 30 trips to Venetian from 2019-2021, depositing $22.3 million and losing $3.6 million during that time. His play continued at a lower level after that period, but the $7.2 million figure would be a doubling of the $3.6 million profit.

When Caesars was fined $7.8 million last year, regulators explained it was a tripling of the company’s $2.6 million profits from the bookmaker. This was done, the board said, to dispel any notion of companies’ ill-gotten gains exceeding their penalties.

Notably, the Venetian admitted to “each and every allegation set forth in the complaint”, the settlement says. MGM and Caesars also admitted wrongdoing in their Bowyer cases, while Resorts World did not.

Host had ‘actual knowledge’ of Bowyer’s bookmaking

The four counts against the Venetian related to Bowyer include:

Failure to establish Bowyer’s source of funds

Failure to ban him from the property

Failure by Bowyer’s host to report him to management

Failure to conduct an investigation

On Friday, Bowyer responded to the settlement in a video posted on his Facebook account.

“First of all, let me say this, I accepted responsibility. I stood before a federal judge and paid my prison sentence,” Bowyer said in the post. “I don’t make any excuses, I don’t blame anyone else for my decisions.”

If the settlement against the Venetian is accepted, the four casinos will pay a combined $34 million in fines by Nevada.

“Their own anti-money-laundering compliance team(s) reviewed my finances, found the red flags, and let me keep betting anyway,” Bowyer added on the casinos.

Source of funds concerns

Despite frequenting the casino for nearly 20 years from 1999-2016, investigators said the issues at ha