In a recent statement made by another former worker of Crown Casino in Melbourne, it was confirmed that poker machines operating at the casino venue have been tampered with by experienced technicians in order to raise the profits of the gambling venue and limit the betting options of the players. This is the fourth person who confirms the allegations submitted for discussion by Federal Independent MP Andrew Wilkie back in October.
It could be recalled that earlier this fall Mr. Wilkie tabled the testimonies of three former employees of Crown’s location in Melbourne, all of which had confirmed that the devices were manipulated with the notion of the management of the gambling facility. In their claims they were pointing our a wide variety of illegal activities happening at the location, among which avoiding federal anti-money laundering rules, ignoring cases of domestic violence, as well as illegal drug use on the premises of the casino venue. These scandalous statements caused a wave of investigations conducted by Victoria’s Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation.
As a response, Crown’s management refuted all accusations and even went so far as to begin an ad campaign rejecting all claims for illegal activities going on. In these ads, Executive Chairman John Alexander stated that if there is any evidence for such wrongdoing, Mr. Wilkie should put an end to the political games and address his claims without privilege. The fourth person who provides insight into the illegal practices of Crown Casino stated that he and other technicians had to remove betting options on the Players Choice Super machines operating in the casino venue.
Is Tampering with Poker Machines Really Necessary?
The reason they were given for this order was that the players were winning too much and the move could possibly prevent the revenue rates of the casino from plunging. According to him, there were even some cases when the players were winning too much and the technicians were receiving instructions to completely remove the gamble button of the device. Another instance called for the removal of the multiple spin options on the IGT Blue Chip machines. This resulted in only the maximum bet and minimum bet options being available to the players. The claims of the worker add up to what the other three employees have confirmed previously, that many machines were deliberately manipulated.
Back in October the said employees accused Victoria’s Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation in not investigating the issues when they were first noticed. Now the most recent whistleblower is worried for his own safety and has not yet testified to the police out of fear that people with a lot of influence in Crown Casino could identify him. However, he said that there should be actual evidence in the form of paper accounts for the illegal actions since the order was coming from the management of the venue. In addition, another common practice was relocating the devices into highly populated areas of the venue, as well as wiping their memory. Investigation of all allegations is currently in progress, stated Victoria’s Gaming Minister Marlene Kairouz.
