AGCO hands CAN$227,250 penalty to Rideau Carleton Casino

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has issued a financial penalty of CAN$227,250 (£147,583/€174,679/US$175,082) to HR Ottawa LP for a series of failings at its Rideau Carleton Casino land-based venue.

During an audit of the casino venue, the AGCO looked at a number of alleged breaches of the Standards for Gaming, as set by the AGCO registrar.

Some 36 violations were identified during the audit, including that the casino was alleged to have provided advertising and marketing materials to individuals who had self-excluded from gambling activities.

The AGCO also said HR Ottawa repeatedly failed to implement, follow and enforce required anti-money laundering policies and procedures, while it also did not address matters of concern identified by internal auditors in a timely manner.

HR Ottawa failed to maintain a compliance oversight function that was not independent of its operations, as is required, neither did it sufficiently protect gaming systems and data from security vulnerabilities in accordance with established industry and technology good practices.

In addition, the AGCO said HR Ottawa did not ensure that staff completed necessary training in areas such as anti-money laundering policies and procedures.

“The AGCO has the mandate and the responsibility to ensure casinos are operating with honesty, integrity, and in the public interest,” AGCO chief executive and registrar Tom Mungham said.

“These penalties are intended to drive the improvements needed at the Rideau Carleton Casino, and we will be carefully monitoring the casino’s activities to ensure these significant audit findings are addressed.”

HR Ottawa will have the option to appeal against the findings to the Licence Appeal Tribunal, an adjudicative tribunal independent of the AGCO and part of Tribunals Ontario.

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