In the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas, the MGM Grand, a beacon of luxury and entertainment, found itself at the centre of a scandal that would shake its very foundations. The story begins with Wayne Nix, a former minor league baseball player, who walked into the MGM Grand with $120,000 in cash to settle a gambling debt.

Scott Sibella, the then-president of the casino, was well aware of Nix’s illegal sports-betting operations. Yet, he chose to ignore the suspicious transaction, encouraging Nix to continue gambling as a VIP customer. This decision would later come back to haunt him.

High stakes of ignorance and a President’s downfall

Fast forward to the present, Sibella, a veteran Las Vegas casino executive, found himself admitting guilt in a federal court for allowing an unlawful sports-betting bookie to gamble at the MGM Grand. This act violated anti-money-laundering regulations, leading to a potential five-year prison sentence and a $250,000 fine for Sibella.

The repercussions of this scandal extended beyond Sibella. The MGM Grand and The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, another casino acquired by MGM Resorts in 2022, agreed to pay approximately $7.5 million in fines. These penalties were connected to Nix’s activities at the properties and were part of settlement deals known as non-prosecution agreements with the federal government over anti-money-laundering violations.

The Justice Department’s investigation into Nix’s prolonged illegal betting operations led to these developments. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph T. McNally criticized individuals in highly regulated businesses who not only ignored but also contributed to illegal gambling operations through client referrals. He pointed out that the personal relationship between Sibella and Nix ultimately facilitated the growth of Nix’s illegal enterprise.

Double life of Wayne Nix

Wayne Nix, a former Minor League baseball player who was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 4th round of the 1995 MLB, played as a starting pitcher and leftfielder.

Born in 1976, in Van Nuys, California, Nix had a six-year minor league career with stops in Arizona, Texas, and California. An elusive character, Nix is seen in the photo above at a 1999 baseball card during his time with Oakland A’s farm team. He has not been publicly photographed in over two decades since his days as a baseball player.

After his baseball career, Nix ran a major illegal sports betting operation in California, using his connections to recruit former professional athletes as fellow bookies. He has pleaded guilty to running this operation

From high-roller perks to a precipitous decline

Despite his guilty plea, Sibella maintains that he did not act for personal gain and takes full responsibility for his actions and inactions. He expressed pride in his contributions to the industry.

Nix, who frequently travelled to Las Vegas from his home in Orange County, California, with cash in high-denomination bills stashed in duffel bags, brown paper bags, and leather purses, has been accused by prosecutors of running a widespread illegal sports-betting ring involving former and current professional athletes. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business and filing a false tax return in 2022.

Sibella provided Nix with hotel stays, meals, and golf trips with senior executives and other high-rollers between August 2017 and February 2019. He even approved Nix as a guest for complimentary, company-sponsored weekend trips, known as “Undercover Weekends,” a nod to Sibella’s appearance on the reality TV show “Undercover Boss” years earlier.

Nix used these casino golf trips to recruit new sports bettors from MGM Grand’s other high-rollers. In January 2019, Nix informed Sibella that an MGM Grand customer, whom Sibella knew, had placed a $5 million bet on the Super Bowl through Nix’s business.

Two casino hosts assigned to Nix were also privy to the betting ring. One host was even told by Nix that he would be upset if one of the bookie’s clients travelled to Vegas to gamble before settling his sports-betting debt with Nix. These hosts are no longer employed at MGM.

In 2022, Sibella told investigators that he was unsure of the source of Nix’s gambling money. He stated, “I didn’t want to know because of my position. If we know, we can’t allow them to gamble…I didn’t want to know.”

This scandal serves as a stark reminder of the potential pitfalls of the gambling industry and the importance of stringent regulations to prevent such incidents from recurring.

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Former MGM Grand President Scott Sibella admits to violating AML (www.bjnjyw.com)