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Former Sands CEO Steven Jacobs alleges that casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson and his company, the Las Vegas Sands, engaged in all kinds of illegal activities in Macau, the most notable being a Chinese “prostitution strategy”.
Adelson’s attorney called the allegations false and "scurrilous," however, the charges have drawn interest of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Justice Department.
On Wednesday, the Associated Press revealed that Macau authorities are now looking into the handling of documents related to a lawsuit by Jacobs that claimed the company has links to crime bosses and encourages prostitution as part of its business strategy. His legal team is yet to turn over documents and emails that point to senior management orchestrating the said strategy.
Macau has stringent privacy regulations that require consent and notification of authorities before personal data can be transmitted out of the territory.
The Hong Kong-listed company issued a statement to the stock exchange confirming that it was being probed by Macau authorities for allegedly sending information out of the territory without official approval.
Adelson is the only casino executive that has come out against legalizing online poker in the United States. Poker players living in the US have vowed to boycott his properties. The casino billionaire just happens to be one of the biggest donors to the Republican Party.
- Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com
