In a move which has shocked the casino industry Ivy Kwok Ong, of El Paso, Texas has been sentenced to 39 months in prison for bribing Seminole Nation officials in exchange for receipt of various lucrative gaming contracts.
It appears that Ong and the Seminole Officials had made a back door deal whereby Ong was able to apply for the contracts as a machine vendor rather that a gaming manger, which meant that his dubious background was not formally investigated. The agreement gave Ong permission to run the casinos with his company Carlo Worldwide Operations receiving 40% of the net winnings and the tribe taking the 60% balance – a far bigger slice than they would normally be entitled to.
While Ong did admit to all of the offences and gave up ownership of various homes and other assets, he was still fined a total of $199,610 which is now due to the state. This episode shows the massive amounts of money which are involved in the casino industry and the potential for corruption if regulations are not adhered to.
There have been other arrests and a member of the Seminole Nation has been charged with receiving illegal payments as part of the cover up.
In a move which has shocked the casino industry Ivy Kwok Ong, of El Paso, Texas has been sentenced to 39 months in prison for bribing Seminole Nation officials in exchange for receipt of various lucrative gaming contracts.