Nevada regulators fine Laughlin casino a record $500,000 for incidents involving security officers

LAS VEGAS (AP) – nevada Gambling regulators fined a hotel-casino in Laughlin a record $500,000 in a settlement with the state Gaming Control Board over incidents nearly two years ago involving security officers who assaulted a patron and a resort employee.

The Nevada Gaming Commission on Thursday unanimously approved the agreement with Don Laughlin’s Riverside Resort, which fired four security officers and hired a fifth to a different job after separate incidents in 2022. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported,

The Commission said that this fine is the highest ever imposed for such incidents.

One incident involved a customer who would not leave the slot machine area during an accounting check at the resort about 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Las Vegas. colorado River along the border of Arizona. The second involved an unidentified Riverside employee who was falsely accused of smoking marijuana during his shift, Riverside said.

In both the cases, people were injured at the hands of security guards. The casino patron was thrown to the ground and reportedly suffered leg injuries, the newspaper reported.

Riverside officials said they formed a review committee months later to address the incidents and prevent similar actions from happening again.

Riverside Chief Operating Officer Matthew Laughlin said during Thursday’s hearing that both incidents involved different security guards, and they failed to follow resort policy. He said the company did not assess the personalities of the guards involved in the incidents before hiring.

“Instead of deescalating the situation, they (guards) took it to the next level,” Loughlin said.

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