HARRISBURG, Pa. — Editor's note: The above video is from Feb. 22.
The company that operates Hollywood Casino at Penn National Racecourse was fined $45,000 for allowing five people who were enrolled in the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board's iGaming Self-Exclusion Program to participate in online gambling.
The five people were allowed to play at the Grantville, Dauphin County casino's online Barstool Sportsbook, according to the online gambling news website PennStakes.com.
The PGCB said online casinos must refuse wagers from and deny gaming privileges and benefits to anyone who has placed themselves on the iGaming Self-Exclusion List.
Self-exclusion allows a person to request to be excluded from legalized gaming activities within a casino and offsite venues, online, at VGT establishments or on fantasy contests, the PGCB said. Those who enroll in self-exclusion are prohibited from collecting any winnings, recovering any losses or accepting complimentary gifts or services or any other thing of value from a licensee or operator.
Two other operators of Pennsylvania casinos were fined $7,500 each for violating PGCB online gaming rules, the agency said.
- Downs Racing L.P., operator of Mohegan Pennsylvania casino in Wilkes-Barre, and its iGaming partner Unibet Interactive, Inc., were jointly ordered to pay a fine of $7,500 for failure to suspend an interactive gaming account for an individual who had utilized one of the offered compulsive gambling tools and requested a temporary suspension of online gaming activities. In this instance, the individual requested a 90-day “cool off” period, but the request went unacknowledged by the operator and the individual continued substantial gaming activity for 21 more days, according to the PGCB.
- Evolution US LLC, holder of an iGaming Manufacturer License, which was fined $7,500 for an unlicensed employee dealing several games of blackjack in its gaming studio for live dealer interactive gaming.
The PGCB also said two people have been banned from playing at any Pennsylvania casinos for leaving their children unattended in casino parking lots while they gambled inside.
In one instance, a male patron left a 12-year-old child unattended in a running vehicle while he made wagers at the sportsbook at the Presque Isle Downs & Casino in Erie, the PGCB said.
In the other instance, a woman left her 14-month-old child unattended in a running vehicle while she wagered at the sportsbook of the Valley Forge Casino in Montgomery County, according to the PGCB.
The PGCB said the bans "serve as a reminder that adults are prohibited from leaving minors unattended in the parking lot or garage, a hotel, or other venues at a casino since it creates a potentially unsafe and dangerous environment for the children."
In addition to being banned from gambling at Pennsylvania casinos, those who violate rules about leaving children unattended in parking lots are subject to criminal prosecution, the PGCB said.
Since the start of 2022 through February of this year, the PGCB said it has identified 331 incidents of adults leaving a total of 552 children unattended to gamble at Pennsylvania casinos.