The Two Kings Casino of Catawba Nation is now under federal investigation after some family members of two lawmakers from South Carolina were allegedly linked to it.
According to documents, two individuals – the husband of former Governor Nikki Haley and the brother of US Representative James Clyburn – received shares of Kings Mountain Equipment Supply LLC. Some media hubs, such as The Wall Street Journal, report that the ex-governor was not involved in the scheme.
The National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) confirmed that an investigation is currently being held.
As CasinoGamesPro previously reported, the casino project in Kings Mountain received official approval at the time when Ms. Haley was the US Ambassador to the United Nations. Reportedly, she did not lobby the administration of President Trump for the casino project.
Two Kings is currently situated in temporary trailers while the permanent location of the casino resort is under construction. So far, there was no official statement on whether the ongoing investigation is set to affect the construction works but, according to previous reports, the federal investigation has blocked the construction of the tribal casino resort project in North Carolina.
Some casino customers believe that the report will have no influence on players’ interest in the gambling services offered by Two Kings Casino because the investigation had nothing to do with the casino itself, so they will probably continue to go there. Despite the position of some casino patrons, the concern about the impact of the investigation remains.
Alleged Links of Politicians’ Relatives to the Casino Operator Sparked the Federal Probe into Two Kings Casino
According to reports from The Wall Street Journal, Kings Mountain Equipment Supply gets 20 cents from every dollar generated by the Two Kings casino’s slot machines.
The media hub revealed that the brother of Representative Clyburn worked with Catawba Nation and was granted some shares in the company operating the aforementioned casino project. So far, the office of Mr. Clyburn did not comment on the situation. Reportedly, the US Representative was not aware of his brother’s affairs.
Earlier this week, the Catawba Nation issued a media statement saying that the group had made corrections or was currently actively engaged in resolving the concerns shared by the National Indian Gaming Commission to the extent that the Commission had identified a certain area of concern in its review that was unveiled at the end of July.
As CasinoGamesPro revealed, the Catawba Nation originally planned to establish the Two Kings Casino project in South Carolina. Unfortunately for the Native American tribe, it was forced to abandon these plans when state lawmakers turned down the project.
Although some of the Two Kings’ patrons confirmed their support for the venue, saying that the ongoing federal investigation would not affect them to go and play at the casino, there are others, such as Bobbie Causby, manager of Kings Mountain Travel Plaza, who shared that the casino was not a suitable addition to the neighborhood and hoped the investigation would eventually result in the Two Kings’ closure.
