Former MGM Grand and Resorts World Las Vegas president could lose gaming license in regulatory settlement

Scott Sibella, who served as president of MGM Grand and Resorts World Las Vegas, entered an agreement with the Nevada Gaming Control Board this week that at least temporarily ends his career in the industry. The agreement must be approved by the Nevada Gaming Commission. 

In January, Sibella entered a plea agreement with federal authorities for failing to file a cash transaction report with the federal government when illegal sports bookie Wayne Nix paid a gambling debt to MGM with $120,000 in cash. He will pay the state a $10,000 fine for its investigatory costs. 

Under Nevada law, Sibella will be eligible to apply for a gaming license after December 27, 2028, five years from the date federal authorities filed the plea agreement. 

The state’s stipulated agreement addresses Sibella’s actions at MGM, but “also encompasses, and is intended to resolve any responsibility attributable to RESPONDENT for his actions or inaction in relation to any potential violation of…regulations during his employment by Resorts World Las Vegas, LLC (Resorts World).”

A complaint filed by the Gaming Control Board in August alleges Resorts World turned a blind eye as it won millions of dollars from known illegal bookies and convicted felons who lacked a confirmed source of funds.

The GCB alleged “an overall lack of control within Resorts World and acceptance among Resorts World executives of a culture where information of suspicious or illegal activity, at a minimum, is negligently disregarded, or at worst, willfully ignored for financial gain, given the overall pressure for Resorts World to generate revenue, and that the bonuses of Resorts World executives are directly tied to the financial success of Resorts World.”

Resorts World’s compliance committee, according to the complaint, rewrote meeting minutes regarding gambler Matt Bowyer’s source of income. 

Bowyer is the bookie who took tens of thousands of bets from Ippei Mizuhara, the interpreter who admits to stealing more than $16 million from baseball star Shohei Ohtani to feed his gambling addiction.

Sibella, who was president at the time, says although he was on the committee, he never attended a meeting. 

“I relied on my executive team to handle compliance issues,” Sibella said in August via text. “At MGM, I relied on the Corporate Compliance Committee, which I was never invited to attend.”

Sibella did not respond to a request for comment.

Resorts World announced earlier this month that former MGM Resorts CEO Jim Murren is leading a newly formed board of directors at the troubled casino. Sibella ran MGM Grand and other MGM properties under Murren’s watch. 

An email obtained by the Current reveals Murren was informed in 2019 that Sibella was catering to unsavory gamblers.