Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and its affiliated entities have agreed to pay a $7.8 million tremendous after Nevada regulators outlined in depth anti-money laundering lapses involving California bookmaker Mathew Bowyer. The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) filed a five-count grievance describing how Caesars continued internet hosting Bowyer regardless of years of inside warnings pointing to unverifiable revenue and important danger considerations.
Regulators Detail Long-Running Oversight Failures
According to the grievance, Bowyer had been wagering at Caesars Palace from earlier than 2017 via January 2024. Internal opinions flagged him as suspicious as early as 2017, primarily due to the on line casino’s incapability to determine a respectable supply of funds. Multiple due diligence checks reached the identical conclusion, but Bowyer continued to gamble massive sums at Caesars properties, together with Caesars Palace, Harrah’s Resort Southern California, and Harveys Lake Tahoe (now Caesars Republic Lake Tahoe).
Bowyer, whose title gained prominence after taking bets from Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, gambled closely at Caesars regardless of missing revenue to match his betting patterns. Mizuhara stole thousands and thousands from Ohtani to cowl playing money owed, although Ohtani himself was not implicated. Bowyer is now serving a 12-month sentence for working an unlawful playing enterprise, cash laundering, and submitting a false tax return.
The regulator’s submitting exhibits a repeated sample: Caesars famous considerations about Bowyer, suspended his account, accepted paperwork he offered, and reinstated him regardless of ongoing uncertainty in regards to the legitimacy of his funds.
In 2017 alone, Bowyer deposited greater than $4 million in entrance cash throughout a number of journeys to Caesars Palace, even because the on line casino recorded that his “source of funds/employment could not be determined.” That similar yr, two different Las Vegas casinos had already banned him — data Caesars documented however didn’t act on.
Concerns escalated in June 2019 when the on line casino acquired an nameless name figuring out Bowyer as a “bookie.” Shortly after, Caesars labeled him as “high risk” due to unverifiable revenue and greater than $2 million in losses over the prior 12 months. His account was suspended the next month however reinstated after he offered his 2018 tax return and claimed winnings of just below $3 million from the Cosmopolitan.
Risk assessments continued to flag him. In November 2020, the on line casino once more listed his revenue as “undetermined/unverifiable.” In May 2021, he was once more labelled excessive danger, with a “314b request” famous in reference to monetary data sharing beneath the Patriot Act.
By July 2021, Caesars suspended his account as soon as extra after concluding he “may be a bookie.” Bowyer offered his 2019 and 2020 tax returns, and the suspension was lifted in September 2021. A yr later, Caesars reported “no revenue found” for 3 companies he claimed to function.
Despite accumulating documentation of danger, Bowyer was solely banned in January 2024. Regulators emphasised that Caesars acted solely after media retailers reported a federal raid on Bowyer’s Orange County residence.“Media outlets reported extensively on Bowyer, including his activities in Las Vegas casinos, his operation of an illegal bookmaking business, and his money laundering activities,” the grievance states, as reported by the Nevada Current.
Broader Regulatory Pressure and Industry Fallout
Caesars is the third Las Vegas operator tied to Bowyer-related failures. Resorts World paid $10.5 million earlier this yr, and MGM Resorts settled for $8.5 million. Industry-wide enforcement has surged in 2025, with mixed AML-related fines surpassing $30 million earlier than Caesars’ penalty was added.
The NGCB accused Caesars of 5 failures: not establishing Bowyer’s funding sources, not banning him regardless of identified points, inadequate due diligence after adverse data surfaced, not escalating the matter to AML officers, and never conducting ample investigations.
Caesars said: “At Caesars Entertainment, integrity and regulatory compliance are paramount. We fully cooperated with the Nevada Gaming Control Board throughout its investigation and are committed to maintaining strong anti-money laundering and ‘know your customer’ programmes.”
Nevada’s regulators have careworn rising concern about repeated AML violations throughout main Strip operators. The NGCB’s chair has indicated that escalating enforcement — together with bigger fines — will stay on the desk ought to operators proceed demonstrating what regulators view as recidivist habits.
As Caesars navigates the fallout, the corporate faces a difficult stretch marked by declining Las Vegas efficiency, regulatory uncertainty round prediction markets, and setbacks in its New York on line casino ambitions. Meanwhile, Bowyer’s actions proceed reverberating throughout the business, prompting intensified scrutiny of AML failures all through Nevada’s gaming panorama.
