Former Resorts World, MGM Grand top executive Scott Sibella to have gaming license revoked

Nevada gaming regulators have reached a tentative settlement with ex-casino executive Scott Sibella that would effectively end his career in the state's gambling industry. 

The Nevada Gaming Control Board filed a stipulation of settlement with the Nevada Gaming Commission revoking Sibella’s gaming license and his finding of suitability in the state in addition to imposing a fine of $10,000, reports the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Sibella, the former top executive at Resorts World and MGM Grand, would also be placed on the board’s list of denials, revocations, and findings of unsuitability. This move would bar him from applying to re-enter Nevada’s gaming industry for a five-year term, retroactive to December 2023.

Sibella pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles that month for failing to file, while employed at MGM Grand, a suspicious activities report to federal officials investigating the presence of illegal bookmakers in violation of AML laws.

The charge stemmed from his tenure as president of the MGM Grand casino hotel, which is where since-convicted illegal bookmaker Wayne Nix gambled with impunity, according to authorities.

The commission must approve the settlement agreement before it becomes final. The commission is scheduled to meet Thursday in Boulder City.

Sibella's future in the gambling industry

License revocations are rare. While the commission could seek a higher fine — up to $300,000 — a license revocation is a far greater penalty on a licensee and it’s expected the commission would agree to the $10,000 fine, which was suggested by Sibella’s legal counsel.

While such a settlement with the Gaming Commission would prevent him from holding a key executive role in Nevada’s licensed casinos, regulators in other states often follow Nevada’s lead on complaint penalties. This means Sibella could have a hard time getting a top gaming position in other states.

Sibella was previously sentenced to one year’s probation and fined $9,500, plus a $100 special assessment, for violating the federal Bank Secrecy Act established to prevent money laundering at financial institutions, after he failed to file a suspicious activity report (SAR) at MGM Resorts in 2017. U.S. District Judge Dolly M. Gee pronounced the sentence May 8 in the Central District Court of California in downtown Los Angeles.

After parting ways with MGM Grand in 2019, Sibella took the helm at Resorts World. While he served as the top executive at Resorts World, state gaming regulators allege that management turned a blind eye to illicit behaviors and allowed suspected illegal gamblers, such as Mathew Bowyer, the since-convicted bookmaker, to play at the property in violation of federal anti-money laundering laws.

The Control Board’s settlement agreement with Sibella notes that while the disciplinary complaint against the former executive addresses his tenure at MGM Grand, it also resolves any “responsibility attributable” to him at Resorts World, which is involved in two pending disciplinary complaints filed by the board on Aug. 15.