Reno’s Grand Sierra Resort penalized $250,000 for blocking state agent entry

The Nevada Gaming Commission has fined Reno's Grand Sierra Resort $250,000 after its security team obstructed a Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) agent from accessing a theater on the property in December 2023. MEI-GSR Holdings LLC, the company operating under the Grand Sierra Resort brand, accepted the fine, agreeing to a settlement without disputing the allegations brought forth in an October complaint by the NGCB.

According to the complaint, security personnel at the Grand Sierra Resort initially denied entry to an enforcement agent who was performing a standard property inspection on December 19. The agent reportedly faced a delay of about six minutes before gaining access to the theater and chose to leave after a discussion with security staff, citing the initial obstruction. 

In January 2021, GSR was issued a similar violation after an inspection revealed that the resort had employed private security officers who were not properly licensed by the Private Investigators Licensing Board. Following this earlier incident, the NGCB issued a formal warning to the resort in February 2021.  

At Monday’s commission meeting, Senior Deputy Attorney General Michael Somps noted that board agents have full authority to inspect all areas within a licensed property, including non-gaming sections, due to their potential influence on Nevada’s regulatory objectives.

Somps explained that an agent’s discretion to access any area, from gaming floors to nightclubs, ensures adherence to the standards governing Nevada’s reputation. “Board agents have access to all portions of the premises of a gaming establishment,” Somps clarified, as per Las Vegas Review-Journal.

“The definition of premises is essentially curb to curb.” He referenced past incidents in which board agents entered nightclubs within resorts to investigate alleged activities, such as drug use, that could harm the state’s interests.

Grand Sierra Resort is owned by the same group that operates the Sahara in Las Vegas.