Operators of John Ascuaga’s Nugget fined $1M
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has fined the operators of John Ascuaga’s Nugget in Sparks $1 million for violating anti-money laundering provisions of the Bank Secrecy Act.
The director of the network, known in the banking industry as FinCEN, said casino managers “willfully violated” the law and “had a systemic breakdown in its compliance program.”
Representatives of the Ascuaga family said they are happy that closure in the case has been reached through settlement and the company can now continue with the sale of the property.
The FinCEN investigation led to the resignation of Michonne Ascuaga from the Nevada Gaming Commission in February. Ascuaga, daughter of Northern Nevada gaming pioneer John Ascuaga, was appointed to the commission in April 2015 and resigned a day after a court filing revealed the Nugget, which she managed for 16 years, was under investigation. FinCEN falls under the U.S. Treasury.
Gov. Brian Sandoval has yet to appoint a replacement for the vacancy.
FinCEN director Jennifer Shasky Calvery said the compliance breakdown was a key to the investigation.
“Despite the fact that it hosted convicted embezzlers and had been repeatedly alerted to suspicious transactions by its own (Bank Secrecy Act) compliance manager, (Nugget executives) saw no need to re-think its (anti-money laundering) defenses,” Calvery said in a statement announcing the resolution of the case.
She said the company disregarded its compliance manager, chose not to file suspicious activity reports and instructed management to not interact with the Internal Revenue Service’s auditors.
Sparks Nugget also committed hundreds of record-keeping violations and failed to report several currency transaction reports, Calvery said.
“As members of the Northern Nevada business community for over 60 years, we have always strived to operate with integrity and decency,” the Ascuaga family’s statement said. “That being said, we understand the seriousness of the FinCEN assessment and are satisfied that this matter has been resolved.”
The statement added that the stipulated dismissal filed with the court would end the litigation associated with the sale of the 1,600-room property located in Sparks on Interstate 80 to Wolfhound Holdings.
The state Gaming Control Board will review the management of the 61-year-old property and its 52,000-square-foot casino by Las Vegas-based Marnell Gaming at today’s board meeting.
Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Find him on Twitter: @RickVelotta
