Месяц: Апрель 2014

New Adelaide Casino Platinum

THE Great Gatsby would feel at home in Adelaide Casino’s new Platinum Room.
Inspired by the golden era of travel in the 1920s, the conservatory-style room for VIP players features 11 custom-designed chandeliers fitted with 1100 Swarovski crystals imported from Austria.
Its opening tomorrow (February 14) will coincide with the start of a new tax and regulatory regime thrashed out between casino operator SkyCity and the State Government over four years of negotiations.

SkyCity general manager of business development Aaron Morrison described the $7 million room, with mirrored glass columns, art deco-style moulded ceilings and carpets inspired by the world’s great fashion houses, as “Gatsby-like”.
Mr Morrison said it was the first step towards the casino’s goal of attracting more high rollers from interstate and overseas.
He said SkyCity had doubled its sales team to 30, largely based in major Asian cities, to lure big money players to Adelaide.
The Platinum Room, which has 150 poker machines, and the newly opened Baccarat Pavilion are part of a $45 million overhaul of the current casino building this year.
“We have assembled a truly world class team of architects, interior designers and builders to deliver an entertainment environment that is second to none in South Australia and equal to any other interstate or overseas,” Mr Morrison said.
The internal upgrades represent the start of the $350 million expansion including a six-star, 100-suite hotel in a new building of up to 14 storeys.
SkyCity previously said the expansion might be delayed until mid-2018 but Mr Morrison was confident it would be delivered by early 2017.
Adelaide Casino general manager David Christian said the invitation-only, upstairs Platinum Room was for players who gambled at least $12,000 a year and who passed problem gambling screenings.
Mr Christian said the machines were set with maximum bets of up to $100 but they could be altered to be unrestricted at the request of high rollers. He expected the average bet to be $6-7.
Another premium gaming area, the ground level Pearl Room, will open in May.
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Packer Sydney casino

THE government says James Packer's exclusive high-rollers Sydney casino is a win for the city, but analysts and critics question whether the money will add up.
Premier Barry O'Farrell on Monday gave the nod to the Crown Group's $1.3 billion development at the contentious Barangaroo site on Sydney Harbour.

Expected to be running from November 2019, Crown Sydney will include a casino open only to invited VIP gamblers and guests, with high minimum bets and no poker machines.
Although it is expected to have bipartisan support in NSW parliament, Independent Sydney MP Alex Greenwich urged the government not to rush through the legislation supporting the casino licence.
"This is not urgent legislation and the government should allow time for community consultation, input from crime experts, welfare organisations and the local community," he said in a statement.
"Twenty-five dollar roulette tables do not attract high rolling 'whales' and the multi-player gaming terminals allowed are essentially dressed up poker machines."
The agreement guarantees total licence fees and gaming tax payments of at least $1 billion to the NSW government over its first 15 years.
Mr Packer says the development will create jobs and draw international tourists to Sydney, particularly from Asia.
"When these people come they will spend money in Sydney and NSW ... that will create jobs, that will create onspend and I think there will be a big economic benefit for everyone," he told Macquarie Radio.
But independent Senator Nick Xenophon has questioned the claim the casino will be pitched towards Asian high-rollers.
"He will need to keep lowering the threshold and you will see more and more Sydneysiders taking money out of the local economy and spending it on James Packer's new casino," Senator Xenophon told ABC radio.
CBA Institutional Equities analyst Ben Brownette agreed it would be hard for Mr Packer to get a 10 per cent return on his investment without poker machines.
"The numbers I've run suggest that it's going to be very difficult for Crown to make a reasonable return on capital out of outlaying $1.3 billion," Mr Brownette said.
Mr Brownette said Crown had not been gifted anything by the NSW government, and was taking a very large risk on Barangaroo.
A day after the NSW government gave his casino the green light, Mr Packer announced he would donate $60 million over 10 years to Sydney's art scene, a donation described by NSW Greens MP John Kaye as a "corporate promotion".
"Six million dollars a year is a trifle amount of money and will be rapidly consumed in the costs of dealing with yet more problem gambling and money laundering," he told AAP.
The money will be split between western Sydney and the city's cultural institutions, including the Sydney Theatre Company, which will receive $15 million, and the Art Gallery of NSW, which will get $10 million.
It is the largest pledge in the Art Gallery of NSW's history, its director Dr Michael Brand said.
The injection also set records for the Sydney Theatre Company, with its director Patrick McIntyre saying it was the largest contribution the company has received.
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World's No.1 poker player

BRITAIN'S oldest casino is investigating a £7.3 million ($11.5 million) win by the world's top poker player - and is refusing to pay him a penny.
Crockfords, an exclusive gaming club in London's Mayfair, has informed the authorities that it is withholding Phil Ivey’s payout. A source with close knowledge of the dispute described the situation as unprecedented.
Accompanied by a "beautiful Oriental woman", Mr Ivey, a 35-year-old Californian, was playing Punto Banco, which is a skill-free variant of baccarat, when he struck a remarkable winning streak.
The 184-year-old casino initially agreed to transfer the winnings to his bank account, but six weeks on it has returned only his £1 million stake.

Instead it began an exhaustive inquiry. Staff, including the female croupier, were interviewed at length amid fears there may have been some form of collusion. This is thought to have been ruled out.
While it is unclear what, if anything, Mr Ivey has been accused of, lawyers for both sides are said to be engaged in an increasingly tense stand-off. It is not thought that police have been alerted.
Sources said Mr Ivey played for two nights over the August bank holiday for about seven hours in all. Suspicions over the win intensified when it was discovered that his companion’s membership of another Mayfair casino had previously been suspended. The reason for this has not been revealed.
Crockfords, the oldest private gaming club in the world, is owned by Genting, the Malaysian gaming corporation.
Genting investigators flew to London from Kuala Lumpur to speak to everyone who was working on the two nights in question and to examine hours of film from surveillance cameras. The cards used and the shoe they were dealt from were also scrutinised.
"No imperfections, or marks, that would have given Ivey an advantage were found. In any case, Ivey at no time touched the cards," said a source. "The shoe was also thoroughly inspected; once again the investigators drew a blank."
Mr Ivey, who once picked up £10 million in a poker tournament in Las Vegas, was playing in a small private room on the ground floor of Crockfords.
He sat next to his companion. The only other people in the room were the croupier and an inspector. All the action was recorded on ten cameras. Mr Ivey was initially gambling £50,000 per hand, which can be over in less than a minute. He was later given permission by the management to increase his stake to £150,000.
Punto Banco is the favoured game of high-rollers. The result is determined as soon as the cards are dealt – it offers marginally better odds than games such as roulette.
At first, Mr Ivey’s losses were heading towards £500,000 but he recovered, and at the end of the first night was £2.3 million up. His winning form continued on the second night and by the time that he signalled he was ready to quit he had amassed £7.3 million.
He told the management he wanted the money transferred into his bank account.
The casino allegedly told him it couldn’t be done straight away because of the bank holiday, but assured him that it would be done on Tuesday, August 28.
Mr Ivey left the club and the casino began an immediate investigation.
Because of the difficulties involved, instances of Punto Banco cheating are rare.
Twelve years ago a Triad gang used covert surveillance footage to read cards being dealt and relay a signal to a receiver outside the casino. The information was then transmitted to the player using a hidden earpiece. There is no suggestion that Mr Ivey is accused of using any of these methods.
Although he is a respected figure in the poker world, casinos regard him as a "hit and run" gambler, with a tendency to "quit after just a few hands if he wins big". On this occasion, Mr Ivey, a divorcé, assured Crockfords bosses that he would play for a serious amount of time, and transferred £1 million into the casino’s bank.
Mr Ivey declined to comment when approached by a Daily Mail reporter at a tournament in Cannes last week.
"Please don’t talk to me. I am concentrating on my tournament," he said.
His mother, Pamela Ivey, who lives in Las Vegas, said: "He never mentioned it. It can’t have been very important to him, or I think he’d have mentioned it."
Last night a spokesman for Crockfords said: "As a private club we put great store on the confidentiality of the relationship between ourselves and our client and we therefore have no comment to make."
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A PENSIONER is embroiled in a bitter fight with the Adelaide Casino over a $105,000 jackpot she won playing the pokies.
The casino has refused to pay 75-year-old Cecelia Cubillo the money because she won it after playing a $1 credit on a gaming machine that was not being used. After admitting she won the $105,731.75 jackpot using the $1 credit on the abandoned "Fort Knox" machine, casino security staff accused Ms Cubillo of being a thief, describing her actions in playing the abandoned credit as "theft by finding".

A week later, though, the casino gave her a $250 food and drink voucher as a goodwill gesture. Ms Cubillo, an Aboriginal elder who has two university degrees and worked for ATSIC in Canberra and Adelaide before she retired, has lodged a complaint with Liquor and Gambling Commissioner Paul White, who has launched an investigation.

A senior Government legal source has told the Sunday Mail that the investigation has raised a legal question concerning the ownership of abandoned credits on gaming machines and the consequences of those credits being played.

As a result, Mr White has conducted a formal review of the case and has now requested a legal opinion from Crown Solicitor Greg Parker.

Ms Cubillo arrived in Adelaide in 1974 with her five girls after being evacuated from Darwin following Cyclone Tracy. Her mother, noted elder Hilda Jarman Muir, was one of the Stolen Generation who took their case to the High Court in 1995.

When contacted by the Sunday Mail, Ms Cubillo said she went to the casino - which has just won the Major Tourist Attraction category in the SA Tourism Awards - on May 6 last year after visiting friends.

She does not drink or smoke and said she enjoyed playing the pokies "every few weeks or so when I have a few spare dollars". "To me, it was just fun, an outlet," Ms Cubillo said. "I like the bright lights of the casino."

Ms Cubillo said on the May 6 visit she had only $7 with her. She played several machines before moving to the "Fort Knox" machine. She noticed there was a single $1 credit on the machine and to clear it, had played the credit.

"That is when all the lights and noises started on the machine and the jackpot came up," she said.

After speaking to an attendant, she was told a cheque would be arranged - but then the casino's gaming operations manager and security guard became involved.

Ms Cubillo admitted she had played a credit that was already on the machine. Surveillance videos showed a man had been playing the machine.

Ms Cubillo said she was shocked when a female security guard then accused her of being "a thief" and said she would not be paid the jackpot.

"She told me it was theft by finding and I started to get scared that the police would be called and take me away," she said.

"It was very intimidating and overwhelming. I was scared that they would come and arrest me.
"I didn't steal anything, I didn't do anything other than play the credit on the machine and they accused me of theft."

Ms Cubillo said after being confronted and interviewed by security staff and a manager, she had left feeling "bewildered, intimidated and overwhelmed".

She returned to the casino a week later, accompanied by her daughter, and met gaming machine operations manager Frank Edwards.

She was again told the jackpot would not be paid and was given a $250 voucher for food and drinks.

"If I was not entitled to anything, why did they give me the $250 voucher?," she said.

"I have not used it and I will never go back to the casino."

Ms Cubillo has engaged an advocate, who is pursuing the matter.

"My parents brought me up with solid values and taught me principles, values and beliefs," she said.

"I am not a thief. I have never had a parking ticket in my life."

"I have worked hard in life to get the best for my children and I am not a dishonest person. I have done nothing wrong at all."

In a statement to the Sunday Mail on Friday, Adelaide Casino general manager David Christian said the casino "operates in a highly regulated and controlled environment".

"The statutory scheme prohibits customers stealing credits left on gaming machines," he said.

"At all times, Adelaide Casino followed its legal requirement, to the letter, and was therefore required to deny Ms Cubillo the jackpot.

"The entire amount of this jackpot was reseeded into the jackpot pool and was then legitimately won by a customer a week later."

POLICE have uncovered what appears to be one of the first illegal casinos seen in decades has been uncovered by police in Sydney's western suburbs.
Armed with a search warrant police raided the illegal gaming house premises last Friday above a legitimate fruit and vege supermarket at Endesor Park. There is no suggestion of any link between the supermarket and the premises above it.
Inside police found two seperate gaming areas with professional tables set up for playing poker, casino style chips, a pool table and number of large flat screen TV's.
When police attended the premises in Smithfield Rd at about 10.30pm staff were getting ready for clients to arrive.
Food and alcohol was also on hand for the patrons.
"It was quite an elaborate set up," said Fairfield Local Area Commander Detective Superintend Peter Lennon.
"We had received information from the public and after some investigation a search warrant was obtained and police went to the premises.''
Detective Lennon said he could no recall of a raid on a "illegal gaming" house in recent times.
"Years ago they were common place, but I haven't heard of them for years."
He said no charges were laid because no one was caught in the act of gambling when police attended.
"Investigations are continuing and we will also be referring the matter to council about what type of premises they have approval to operate."
Officers seized paperwork and a CCTV hard drive recorder. A 49-year-old man was spoken to at the time and is likely to be re interviewed by police.
Superintenedant Lennon said the operaters were members of the middle eastern community.

At the location raided by police is a door with a "Members Only" sign which opens to a staircase and rooms above the large fruit shop.
The site is on a major sized block with a large parking area and is self contained. An Assyrian social club is next to the supermarket. There is suggestion of any link between the premises and the social club.
Neighbors across from the club said they knew nothing of the casino or its operation.
For many years illegal casinos and card rooms flourished through out Sydney.
"In the 80's and even in the 90's illegal gambling operations were everywhere," said a retired NSW detective.

"A lot of the Italians, Greeks, Yugoslavs and other Europeans had illegal card venues throughout the inner city particulalry Marrickville.
"The Chinese had Mah-jong and Manilla operating above restaurants in Chinatown.
"The fancier black-jack and roulette casinos were run by the gangsters in the Cross."
Two up was played at Straithfield, Paddington and in Abercrombie street Redfern."

"In those days most pubs had their own SP bookie."
The advent of Sydney's legal casino catered for the big punters and the growth of TAB's through out the city's hotels killed off the SP bookie.

A HIGH roller who gambled a whopping $1.5 billion at Melbourne's Crown Casino has lost his High Court bid to recover his losses.
Gold Coast businessman Harry Kakavas turned over $1.479 billion playing baccarat at the casino between June 2005 and August 2006 and had been fighting to recover a $20.5 million in net losses.
Mr Kakavas, who made his fortune as a property developer and has been described as Australia's "highest of high rollers", claimed the casino knew he was a pathological gambler and acted unconscionable in allowing him to gamble away vast sums.
He argued Crown had lured him to its tables by allowing him use of its private jet, providing rebates on his losses and had even once driven him to the bank to withdraw more money.
After a failed attempt to recover losses on appeal at Victoria's Supreme Court last year, Mr Kakavas made a last-ditch bid in April to take on Crown in the High Court.
Today, the court unanimously dismissed his appeal, ruling the casino did not act unconscionably, that the businessman was not in "a position of special disadvantage", and his transactions were not unfair, unjust or unreasonable.
In a statement, the court said it did not accept that Mr Kakavas's pathological interest in gambling was a special disadvantage that made him susceptible to exploitation by Crown.
"He was able to make rational decisions in his own interests, including deciding from time to time to refrain from gambling altogether," it said.
"Crown did not knowingly victimise the appellant (Mr Kakavas) by allowing him to gamble at its casino."