Atlantic City Casinos FORFEIT $67K + Pennsylvania BANS 4
In Atlantic City, New Jersey, five casinos and a horse racing track have forfeited more than $67,000 won by gamblers who were underage or who had placed themselves on a list to be excluded from all gaming activities. The details are contained in the Actions of the Director for Oct. 16 – 31 although the document was not made public until Nov. 14.
New Jersey has also imposed a $7,500 fine on DraftKings, an online casino and sportsbook platform, in addition to a $2,000 penalty assessed to Rush Street Interactive for accepting bets on unapproved events. Rush Street Interactive was also found to have accepted bets on matches that had already started.
The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement Regulates New Jersey Gambling
The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, also known as DGE, is responsible for regulating and managing all gambling activities throughout the state of New Jersey.
As such, the department keeps a close eye on jackpot winnings and makes sure that all winnings are paid out as they should be, to the correct legal individuals who won them, or seized and used for the appropriate purposes in the event that the funds were won illegally or by a patron who cannot gamble legally.
Why Would the DGE Withhold Winnings?
In this instance, most of the cases involved parties that won a casino jackpot and then were asked to produce valid identification. When the patrons failed to show valid ID, the winnings were placed in escrow for six months to allow the patrons to claim their winnings if and when they could produce valid ID.
Many of these cases seemingly involved underage gamblers, who certainly weren't ever going to be able to provide valid ID or collect their winnings. Additionally, some of the patrons were previously self-excluded from all New Jersey gambling activities, so these folks were not eligible to collect their winnings either.
Now that the waiting period of six months has come to its conclusion, the funds have been seized by the DGE and forfeited by multiple New Jersey casinos. These funds will go towards assisting problem gamblers and helping senior citizens.
How Much Was Withheld?
The DGE has seized funds totaling more than $67,000 from five different New Jersey casinos and one race track following a mandatory six month waiting period while the funds were held in escrow. The total was initially erroneously reported in several news outlets as being greater than $77,000. This is because some of the casinos, including Ocean and Resorts, saw the amount they had to forfeit reduced either for clerical reasons or because some of the money being held was legitimately redeemed by customers who showed valid ID.
The largest forfeiture came from Resorts Casino. Resorts forfeited more than $45,000 relating to incidents that took place as far back as 2020.
Resorts Casino in Atlantic City forfeited the largest sumOther involved entities included the Ocean Casino Resort, Ballys, Freehold Raceway, the Golden Nugget, and Harrah's. Harrah's forfeited approximately $900, the Golden Nugget forfeited around $4,200, Freehold Raceway forfeited more than $4,400, Bally's forfeited more than $5,600, and the Ocean Casino Resort turned over about $7,400.
Nearby States Have Had Their Own Issues as of Late
Although New Jersey and Nevada are certainly the most prominent states offering live casino gambling, other states, like Pennsylvania, have had somewhat similar issues recently. In Pennsylvania, patrons have continually left children unattended at casinos while they gamble, which as you can imagine is a serious safety and wellness concern.
Parents who have been caught bringing their children to Pennsylvania casinos and leaving them unattended while they gamble have been permanently banned from all Pennsylvania casinos statewide.
Pennsylvania has made a point of punishing these patrons and attempting to spread awareness regarding this issue, like when the state launched a campaign to educate the public about the risks and dangers of bringing children to casinos last year.
In this most recent enforcement action announced by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, four patrons have been placed on the involuntary exclusion list barring them from gambling in Pennsylvania. This action came after six minors were left unattended. In addition, Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course received a $40,000 fine for three incidents where underage patrons were able to gamble on the gaming floor.
In one instance, state troopers broke a car window at Valley Forge Casino Resort to free a child left in a vehicle in 84-degree weather. The child was left unattended for nine minutes while the adult played table games.
In another instance, a woman left two children aged 13 and 10 unattended in a parking garage for 24 minutes while playing slot machines.
Another woman was placed on the involuntary exclusion list after leaving a 13-year-old unattended in the Sky Bridge at Mohegan Pennsylvania Casino for 10 minutes while playing a slot machine.
Gambling is Available Online at Numerous Offshore Sites
In all honesty, it is a bit baffling as to why parents would continue to bring their children to casinos when there are plenty reputable gambling operators serving players in the United States online. It is easy and safe to play from the comfort of your own home, or from anywhere you have a computer, tablet, or mobile phone.
Players who are primarily interested in casino gambling, including slots, table games, and live dealer games may want to browse over to this comprehensive guide regarding the best online casinos for US players.
Players who prefer playing poker may want to explore this page dedicated to the top recommendations for US online poker sites.