The Star Casino in Sydney, Australia has been fined just over $64 thousand USD after three instances of minors gambling on the casino floor were discovered. The latest breach includes a 12-year old girl who was smuggled onto the gaming floor by her parents on a holiday to Australia.
New South Wales Liquor & Gaming Chair Phillip Crawford released a statement highlighting the seriousness of the breaches. “It’s quite staggering that the young girl’s parents facilitated her entry in such a deceptive manner, let alone allowed their daughter to gamble,” Mr Crawford said.
In video footage released by New South Wales Liquor & Gaming, the girl’s mother can be seen sneaking her daughter in through an exit door, before taking her to the gaming floor and watching as the child placed 21 bets on poker machines.
The girl and her parents were reportedly visiting from China on tourist visas and were approached by Star City Casino Security staff once they attempted to leave the venue.
New South Wales Liquor & Gaming of Investigations and Intervention, David Byrne commented that underage patrons on the gaming floor was an “obvious risk.” He added:
“Not only did The Star fail to manage the risk, once the child was on the gaming floor, but there were also several opportunities where staff should have noticed a very young person playing the poker machines – well before they did which was when the family was leaving.”
In another incident, a 16-year old girl gained entry to the casino through a VIP checkpoint without being asked for identification by casino staff. The girl was served alcohol at a casino bar before being discovered as she attempted to enter a night club.
In a separate incident earlier this year, a 17-year old boy played 42 rounds of roulette and 22 hands of poker before being thrown out by security.
“Both children’s forays lasted long enough that they had interacted with several staff members by the time they were discovered, in the 17-year-old boy’s case, CCTV showed a total of 15 staff interactions,” David Byrne said.
