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A Perth woman with a serious gambling addiction managed to lose her and her partner's savings despite asking Crown Casino in Perth. Crown Perth property. Crown staff, she had already lost. Crown Perth (formerly Burswood Island Casino, Burswood Island Complex and Burswood Entertainment Complex) is a resort and casino located in Burswood, Western Australia, near the Swan River.The resort consists of a casino, a convention centre with meeting rooms, theatre and two ballrooms along with 32 restaurants and bars, a nightclub and recreational facilities.
Updated October 24, 2017 15:17:47
A poker machine addict's desperate suicide mission to Crown Casino in Melbourne has thrown into question the gambling giant's commitment to responsible gaming.
Key points:
- Mark Robley lost $120,000 in a three week spree at Melbourne's Crown Casino
- Claims Crown Casino staff were aware he was 'self-excluded' from Crown Casino in Perth
- Says he bought drugs and openly took them at Melbourne Crown Casino
Perth man Mark Robley says he is telling his shocking story to try to get more support for people battling addiction to pokies.
His own gambling problem started when he was a teenager in Townsville.
'I started playing poker machines when I was 18,' he said.
'Started betting small and started enjoying it. My friends would go out clubbing. I would be sort of in the back room playing pokie machines.
'That's where, I guess, my addiction started.'
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He said when he moved to Sydney, temptation was everywhere.
'I couldn't escape,' he said.
'Everywhere I went there were poker machines, every pub, every club.'
So he moved with his partner to Perth where poker machines are only allowed in the city's casino.
And he banned himself from the venue by putting himself on the casino's 'self-exclusion' list.
'It actually took my wife at the time to pull me up and actually pretty much drag me into that centre and self exclude,' he said.
But as it turned out, even that did not protect him.
'I spent every waking minute on the gambling floor'
Recently, the 33-year-old's long-term addiction reached its peak.
Depressed from the break-up of his marriage and using drugs, he lost his job on a Pilbara mine site.
'I lost my job on a Thursday … by the time I landed back in Perth, I'd pre-empted an idea that flying to Melbourne and writing myself off financially was a good idea,' he said.
'I flew over, stayed at Crown Towers over in Melbourne and I spent every minute awake on the gambling floor there losing my money.'
He went to the casino every day for three weeks spending all he had — and much, much more.
'I spent my initial savings of about $20,000, then maxed out all my credit cards — then actually increased the limits on all my credit cards,' he said.
'Then took out a personal loan.
'So, all up over 3 weeks, about $120,000.
'I think there was a period I was there for 48 hours without leaving.'
'They asked if I wanted access to a VIP room'
Crown offers punters the chance to 'self-exclude' themselves from each casino if they know they've got a problem.
Mark was already self-excluded from Crown's casino in Perth but he claims even when Melbourne staff became aware of this they allowed him to continue gambling.
'They actually approached me — I think on the second or third day — on the main gambling floor,' he said.
'I guess they must have noticed how much money I was spending.
'They asked me if I wanted access into one of their VIP rooms and I said yes.
'They took my ID, then they realised I was actually self-excluded at the Perth venue and they've come back to me and said they wouldn't allow access to the VIP room.
'Yet the self-exclusion wouldn't apply to Melbourne, I could stay on the main floor.
'At the time I was trying to fuel my anger, so I didn't care much at the time.
'But, you know, post that incident and reflecting back you'd say it was pretty poor.'
Mr Robley's case has been highlighted in a submission by Financial Counselling Australia to the Victorian Gambling Regulator which is reviewing Crown Melbourne's licence.
'Crown actually identified this man as someone who was self-excluded in Perth, then let him gamble at Crown Melbourne, only excluding him from the VIP room initially' the submission said.
'I would rack up a line of cocaine on a poker machine'
Crown Casino is already in the spotlight after former staff accused it of allegedly tampering with poker machines and turning a blind eye to domestic violence and drug use.
Those allegations have been rejected as 'outrageous' and 'unfounded' by Crown Resorts' chairman John Alexander.
But Mr Robley claims to have first-hand experience.
'I would rack up a line of cocaine on a poker machine and just snort it, and did that frequently in their VIP room, once I had access through a guest,' he said.
'I would just pop ecstasy pills — I would walk around with a bag of pills in my pocket and eat them like they were candy.'
He also claims to have been offered drugs inside the Melbourne casino.
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'The first week I was there I was actually approached by a young kid who offered me drugs, which I accepted,' he said.
'He asked me if I'd like some meth. I said, 'yes'. He said, 'wait here'.
'Two minutes later, an older man sat next to me and offered me a bag for cash and I bought it.'
Mr Robley's trip to Crown Melbourne was also a suicide mission.
He says he tried to overdose on ecstasy tablets while still in the building.
'They took me to hospital and later that day I walked out of the hospital and still wanted to end my life and ended up on a construction crane,' he said.
'I wanted to step off the end but I couldn't.
'Even doing all that damage to myself, there was something deep inside me that still said, 'there's more than this'.'
Crown Casino investigating claims
Mr Robley's allegations come amid pressure for a federal inquiry into the casino industry.
7.30 asked Crown for an interview for this story and the opportunity to show 7.30 around its 24-hour Responsible Gambling Centre in Perth.
A Crown Resorts spokesperson said: 'Crown has a very strong commitment to responsible gaming and we treat any responsible gaming issues raised very seriously. Crown is fully investigating this matter.'
Crown pointed 7.30 to its annual report.
The report says: 'In 2002, Crown Melbourne introduced a world first in responsible gaming initiatives by establishing the Responsible Gaming Support Centre at its resort. A similar facility, the Responsible Gambling Information Centre, was opened at the Crown Perth resort in 2010.
'Employee training and education in responsible gaming begins on an employee's first day during the induction program. This training includes information about observable behaviours that may indicate that a customer may be experiencing difficulty with their gaming experience and how to direct the customer to appropriate services.'
Topics:gambling, suicide, mental-health, depression, melbourne-3000, perth-6000
First posted October 23, 2017 16:07:53
Updated August 02, 2019 10:41:34
Crown Casino has moved to defend itself as it faces further probes by regulators, the threat of a political inquiry and a hit to its share price.
It follows days of allegations levelled against the company and reports linking the casino chain to organised crime.
It is a messy web of allegations, denials and government inquiries.
Here's our primer on the scandal so far, and what it could all mean going forward.
What is it alleged Crown did?
An investigation by Nine's The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and 60 Minutes — which it said was based on tens of thousands of leaked internal Crown documents — alleged the casino was not doing its due diligence to ensure there are no links between junket operators and organised crime.
It alleged junket operators lured gambling whales from mainland China, where gambling is banned.
It also alleged that Crown Casino turned a 'blind eye' to money laundering and that the company exploited weaknesses in Australia's visa system, to fly in Chinese high rollers without appropriate vetting.
The investigation featured the former Australian Border Force head Roman Quaedvlieg, who told 60 Minutes two government ministers complained to him that Crown's VIP jets 'weren't receiving a facilitated service for private jets coming into Australia'.
What has Crown said?
Crown Casino has denied the allegations, taking out newspaper advertisements headed 'setting the record straight in the face of a deceitful campaign against Crown'.
In an advertising blitz on Thursday, the company said Crown's board was 'extremely concerned' for its staff, shareholders and other stakeholders.
The Crown advertisement accuses Nine of unfairly attempting to damage its reputation.
Crown said it had 'a comprehensive anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing program which is subject to ongoing regulatory supervision by [the national anti-money laundering agency] AUSTRAC' and that 'Crown itself has a robust process for vetting junket operators, including a combination of probity, integrity and police checks'.
The company also pointed out that the junkets are not Crown's.
'They are independent operators who arrange for their customers to visit many casinos globally. Crown deals with junkets and their customers in essentially the same way as other international casinos,' Crown said.
'Crown takes its regulatory obligations very seriously, and works closely with all of its regulatory agencies, including state and federal law enforcement bodies.'
Has the Government responded?
When the allegations first aired, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said they were a matter for law enforcement, not the Government.
But since then, Attorney-General Christian Porter said there were sufficient concerns raised to at least warrant further investigation.
He has referred the allegations raised by Nine to the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity.
Mr Porter said the commission was the most appropriate body to consider the allegations and had the ability to 'hold hearings, exercise coercive powers and seize evidence'.
'They have very significant investigatory powers, very significantly stronger than those of a parliamentary committee, obviously including the ability to apply for search warrants, issue notices that attract a criminal penalty, if not complied with.'
Crossbench MP Andrew Wilkie tried to push for a parliamentary inquiry, but didn't have the numbers because Labor and the Coalition voted against it. But it was supported by Senator Jacqui Lambie and the Greens.
Mr Wilkie had wanted the inquiry to not only investigate the most recent public allegations involving Crown Casino, but a series of previous allegations.
Mr Wilkie's motion in Parliament on Tuesday called for the inquiry to examine 'accusations of Crown Casino's links to organised crime, money laundering, improper activity by consular officials, tampering with poker machines, and domestic violence and drug trafficking on Crown property'.
Crown Casino Perth Wa
What about the states where Crown has casinos?
Crown operates in Perth and Victoria, with a further casino in the pipeline for Sydney.
Perth Casino
'Crown can't exist without its arrangements with the State Government,' anti-gambling campaigner Stephen Mayne told the ABC.
Victoria's Minister for Gaming and Liquor Regulation, Marlene Kairouz, said she had asked the gaming regulator to re-examine the allegations 'as a matter of priority' and report back as soon as possible.
She said she had also asked the Department of Justice to examine the regulatory arrangements of junket operators.
The chief executive of the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation said the regulator would work with other agencies that had more power over things like money laundering.
Crown Casino Perth
'I've committed to getting back to the Minister within the next two to three weeks,' Catherine Meyers said.
Meanwhile, a Western Australia State Government spokesperson said the state's gaming commission was 'aware of the issues' raised in recent media reporting.
'The commission is continuing to liaise with other regulatory authorities in relation to these matters to better understand the specific details of the allegations and any potential action,' the spokesperson said in a statement.
How are Crown's shares doing?
On Tuesday the ASX asked Crown to respond to the media allegations and to tell the market if its earnings would be affected.
Crown Resorts told the market it had no information to explain a 7.7 per cent drop in its share price on Monday and Tuesday.
Crown shares slumped from a closing price of $12.67 on Friday afternoon to a low of $11.69 on Tuesday.
It ended Thursday's trading slightly higher at $11.93.
What is the integrity investigation's limitations?
The investigation is being carried out by the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity (ACLEI).
It can only probe the actions of federal law enforcement officers, not Crown employees or politicians.
Mr Wilkie said the referral to ACLEI 'is good, as far as it goes, but it just doesn't go far enough' given it does not have any power to inquire into the conduct of politicians and ministers.
He wants a multiagency investigation including the VCGLR, Victoria Police, the AFP, ASIO, Border Force and AUSTRAC.
Mr Wilkie has also called for a federal anti-corruption agency to be established, saying some of the allegations 'aren't necessarily of criminal behaviour, especially in the case of serving politicians, but they go to whether behaviour is occurring, which might be quite improper'.
This isn't the first time Crown has been in trouble, is it?
No. This is the just the latest round of serious allegations surfacing against Crown Casino.
The Crown Perth
In April 2018, Victoria's gambling regulator, the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor, fined Crown $300,000 for tampering with poker machines.
Whistleblowers from the casino had accused Crown of instructing staff to remove betting options from poker machines, in a scheme known as 'blanking buttons'.
Pokies have multiple betting options for each spin, including how big or small a stake a player wants to make.
Listen: 'It wasn't quite right'
The Age editor Alex Lavelle tells ABC Radio Melbourne's Jon Faine why his paper declined to print Crown's ads.
Crown Casino Perth Restaurants
During March and April 2017, certain buttons were hidden on a number of its gaming machines so that only minimum and maximum betting options were available.
Whistleblowers suspected that was to increase punter losses by forcing them into making higher bets.
The regulator said Crown was being fined for removing betting buttons from 17 of its poker machines without approval.
The fact that staff were told to remove betting options from pokies was first raised in Parliament by Mr Wilkie in October 2017.
The allegations tabled from whistleblowers also included that the company turned a blind eye to drug use and family violence, including allegations that punters soiled themselves while betting and Crown provided them with clean clothes so they could continue gambling.
Parliament also heard that staff were instructed to use different player ID cards when processing transactions over $10,000, to avoid reporting to AUSTRAC.
What could this mean for Crown?
There could be a number of mechanisms used to investigate Crown and other Australian casinos.
On Wednesday, Nine reported that the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) would conduct a special investigation into organised crime in Australian casinos.
A commission spokeswoman told the ABC the Targeting Criminal Wealth Special Investigation was 'not a new investigation, but an existing one'.
Crown Perth Hotel
'[It] aims to disrupt and deter criminal groups by collecting evidence and intelligence about financially motivated crime,' the spokeswoman said.
The investigation could also look at Australia's other main casino operator, Star Entertainment, which owns casinos in Sydney, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
Other regulators could also launch new probes.
Experts have also called on AUSTRAC to investigate allegations that proceeds of crime have been laundered through Crown Casino.
Topics:business-economics-and-finance, gambling, crime-prevention, fraud-and-corporate-crime, regulation, federal-parliament, stockmarket, australia, sydney-2000, perth-6000, melbourne-3000
First posted August 02, 2019 05:01:11