Artichoke Joe’s Casino in California Agrees to Record $5.3M Fine

Artichoke Joe’s Casino has agreed to a record book $5.3 one thousand thousand mulct for purposely misleading California body politic gaming regulators and violating a federal law trim to deter money laundering.

The Golden State Department of Justice (DOJ) announced yesterday that a settlement had been reached betwixt the res publica and 51-table cardroom, located just due west of San Francisco International Airport. The casino in agreement(p) to compensate the penalty for failing to notify the Calif. DOJ’s Bureau of Gambling that it was the topic of a federal investigating past the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

Federal investigators were probing the cassino for possible violations of the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970, a slice of federal lawmaking designed to armed combat money laundering. The California Gambling Control Act of 1998 requires casinos to urinate well-timed(a) disclosures to the land regarding FinCEN or any other federal bureau examining its business.

Artichoke Joe’s admitted to violating the Bank Secrecy Act in the federal review.

Artichoke Joe’s has 45 days to pay the country the $5.3 million fine, positive reimburse the Gambling Bureau for its costs related to the inquiry. The cassino will additionally live under a 36-month compliance stop where commonwealth gaming agents will dungeon secretive tabs on the cardroom’s operations.

Casino Concedes Shortcomings

In its resolution with federal prosecutors, Artichoke Joe’s admitted to routinely weakness to single file Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) during a to a greater extent than eight-year span that ran from Oct 2009 through and through Nov 2017.

The Bank Secrecy Act requires businesses that hold large amounts of cash to assist the US authorities in detecting and preventing money laundering.

The federal natural law necessitates financial institutions, including casinos, to file away a SAR no later than 30 calendar years after the transaction. Casinos must to boot filing cabinet a Currency Transaction Report (CTR) for any somebody transacting to a greater extent than $10,000 inwards a single 24-hour period.

Artichoke Joe’s said it didn’t fit the federal guidelines during that eight-year period. Along with the $5.3 billion country fine, the cassino testament make up $5 one thousand thousand to settle down the FinCEN case.

Casino Claims to Have Changed

This isn’t the number 1 clip Artichoke Joe’s has come under investigating by federal and res publica authorities. group A decennary ago, the Calif. DOJ alleged that the cardroom was engaged inward loan quivering and illegal drugs. The charges of selling narcotics were later dropped, but the gambling casino did not repugn the allegement of issuing illegal loans. Artichoke Joe’s settled with the province in 2011 by right smart of a $575,000 fine.

The casino says it has overhauled its business, and is full complying with tell and federal laws and regulations.

Artichoke Joe’s has worked hard for the finally few years to pose inwards place Bank Secrecy Act controls that come across rigorous and very coordination compound federal standards, and this settlement was an acknowledgement that our efforts feature been successful,” said Artichoke Joe’s President Vince DeFriese.

Artichoke Joe’s was opened in 1921 by Chief Joseph Sammut, who made his money inwards artichokes. His son, Dennis Sammut, owned the casino until his decease inwards February of 2020. The Sammut home continues to moderate the casino.