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FILE
PHOTO: Steve Wynn speaks during the Milken Institute Global
Conference in Beverly Hills
Thomson
Reuters
(Reuters) – Nevada state regulators have opened an investigation
into sexual misconduct accusations leveled against Las Vegas
casino magnate Steve Wynn by former and current employees in a
Wall Street Journal article last week, media reports said on
Tuesday.
The billionaire founder, chairman and chief executive officer of
Wynn Resorts Ltd has denied the allegations as “preposterous” and
accused his ex-wife of instigating them for her own gain in
litigation against him and his company.
The regulatory inquiry was revealed on Tuesday in a statement
that CNBC and several other news outlets attributed to Nevada
Gaming Control Board Chair Becky Harris, whose agency oversees
enforcement of casino and gambling operations and licensing in
the state.
“After completing our review, the Nevada Gaming Control Board is
conducting an investigation with regard to the allegations of
sexual misconduct involving Steve Wynn. The Nevada Gaming Control
Board will conduct its investigation in a thorough and judicious
manner,” Harris was quoted as saying.
A spokesman for Wynn Resorts, Michael Weaver, said the company
“will fully cooperate with any review by regulators.”
Reuters was unable to independently obtain a copy of the
statement, but one source with knowledge of the situation
confirmed that media reports citing the statement were accurate.
Wynn, 76, resigned as finance chairman of the Republican National
Committee on Saturday, a day after the Wall Street Journal
reported he had routinely subjected women who worked for him to
unwanted sexual advances for decades..
His former spouse, Elaine Wynn, whom he accused of fomenting
false allegations against him, has denied through her lawyer that
she did any such thing.
The company’s stock dropped more than 10 percent on Friday after
publication of the Journal’s article, closing the day at $180.29
per share on the Nasdaq exchange.
Hours later, the Wynn Resorts board said it had formed a special
committee to conduct its own inquiry into the accusations. That
panel is chaired by Patricia Mulroy, who sits on the board’s
corporate governance and compliance committees and is a former
member of the Nevada Gaming Commission.
The Journal report marked the latest in a wave of sexual abuse
and harassment allegations against powerful men in the United
State during the past year, especially in the media and
entertainment industries and politics.
The Journal said its report was based on interviews with dozens
of people who had worked for Wynn and that none of the 150
individuals contacted for its story had reached out to the
newspaper.
(Reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Editing by Paul Tait
and Neil Fullick)
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