Crown misconduct whistleblower had claims dismissed by VCGLR: Wilkie

Wednesday 11th of July 2018

The whistleblower who alleged serious misconduct at Crown Casino has had their allegations dismissed by Victoria’s gambling regulator because they wanted to remain anonymous, said independent MP Andrew Wilkie, The Guardian reports.

Last year, the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation (VCGLR) was ordered to investigate misconduct claims against Crown Melbourne, which alleged that the casino operator provided Crown-branded picks to its customers, which allowed them to play continuously without any human input.

However, the testimony from the who whistleblowers were reportedly dismissed by the Victorian gaming regulator, as the informants wanted to remain anonymous.

Wilkie made a complaint to the regulator on June 20, but released the letter to the public on Wednesday after hearing no response from the regulator.

“I wrote to the VCGLR three weeks ago about loss of confidence in its ability to investigate alleged wrongdoings at Crown Casino,” said Wilkie in a statement on Wednesday.

“There’s been no response, so today I’m releasing this information because the public has a right to know how the Victorian state government and its gambling regulator operate.”

A VCGLR spokesperson responding to Wilkie’s statement said that “the VCGLR is considering the concerns raised in the correspondence from Mr Wilkie and will respond in due course.”