Laundering money still going on in Las Vegas
Source: Agencies |
November 18, 2009, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
LAS Vegas has cleaned up since its days as a magnet for ill-gotten mobster gains, but a Canadian insider trading scam has exposed the smaller-scale money laundering still going on in the city's casinos.
Canadian Stanko Grmovsek admitted in a Toronto court earlier this year to making US$9 million with a law school buddy in a 14-year illegal scheme. He said he laundered some of it by gambling in Vegas.
His confession was a flashback to an era when "Sin City" was a playground for gangsters offloading their loot.
But strict controls have slashed financial crime in Vegas casinos, and most organized criminals use less scrutinized industries like used-car lots and family restaurants to convert illegal profits into clean money.
"In a currency intensive industry it's virtually impossible to eliminate entry points for money laundering," said Paul Camacho, special agent in charge for the Las Vegas Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service's criminal investigation arm.
Grmovsek's admission came despite efforts to keep gambling parlors.
Many Las Vegas casinos are publicly listed and, with their licenses at stake, they watch closely for any shenanigans at the tables. Internal Revenue Service regulations requiring cash transactions involving more than US$10,000 to be reported make large-scale crime difficult.
Grmovsek said he and his friend Gil Cornblum, a Toronto lawyer, made their money from Grmovsek buying stocks based on tip-offs from Cornblum, who committed suicide as the case was pending.
Grmovsek said he transferred profits from offshore accounts to casinos in Las Vegas and the Bahamas where he would bet on sporting events or play blackjack and cash in piles of chips.
Canadian Stanko Grmovsek admitted in a Toronto court earlier this year to making US$9 million with a law school buddy in a 14-year illegal scheme. He said he laundered some of it by gambling in Vegas.
His confession was a flashback to an era when "Sin City" was a playground for gangsters offloading their loot.
But strict controls have slashed financial crime in Vegas casinos, and most organized criminals use less scrutinized industries like used-car lots and family restaurants to convert illegal profits into clean money.
"In a currency intensive industry it's virtually impossible to eliminate entry points for money laundering," said Paul Camacho, special agent in charge for the Las Vegas Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service's criminal investigation arm.
Grmovsek's admission came despite efforts to keep gambling parlors.
Many Las Vegas casinos are publicly listed and, with their licenses at stake, they watch closely for any shenanigans at the tables. Internal Revenue Service regulations requiring cash transactions involving more than US$10,000 to be reported make large-scale crime difficult.
Grmovsek said he and his friend Gil Cornblum, a Toronto lawyer, made their money from Grmovsek buying stocks based on tip-offs from Cornblum, who committed suicide as the case was pending.
Grmovsek said he transferred profits from offshore accounts to casinos in Las Vegas and the Bahamas where he would bet on sporting events or play blackjack and cash in piles of chips.
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