Scottish police continue to search for the brazen robber who stole thousands of pounds from the Genting Casino Fountain Park in Edinburgh at knifepoint early Monday. No one was injured.

The would-be robber was first spotted in an underground parking garage at the property at about 1 am. He then stole a cell phone from an employee who was on a break outside of the building.

Armed with the knife, the thief ordered the worker to take him inside the casino.

Once near the cashier’s counter, he threatened two other workers. He demanded money and gaming chips, which were turned over.

He was given thousands of pounds. One UK pound is equal to about $1.38 in US currency. The chips are marked with “Fountainpark” — the name of the property.

After getting the loot, he ran out of the casino through an emergency exit. He was last seen heading to the garage.

Nobody was injured in this incident but it was a frightening experience for the staff members involved,” Detective Inspector Kevin Tait of the Scotland Criminal Investigation Division (CID) said in a police Facebook post.

In an effort to identify the robber, police were to review surveillance video showing scenes from inside and near the casino. Cops are also looking for witnesses.

“I would urge anyone with information which could help to identify the man, or anyone who was in the area at the time and saw anything to contact police as soon as possible,” Tait said. “Similarly, I would ask anyone who becomes aware of a large quantity of casino chips stamped with ‘Fountainpark’ in the city to report this to the police immediately.”

Detailed Description Released

The robber is believed to be of Middle Eastern ethnicity, and in his mid-to-late 20s. He is thin. He spoke with a mixed Scottish, Asian accent.

Malaysia-based Genting Group has casinos in Scotland, as well as elsewhere in the United Kingdom.

In total, Genting UK has 32 UK casino licenses. Other Genting gaming properties are in Asia and the US.

Genting Expands in Las Vegas, Expansion Desired in New York

In June, the company-owned Resorts World Las Vegas opened on the Las Vegas Strip. At $4.3 billion, the red-tinted gaming property became the most expensive hotel-casino in Nevada history.

Last month, it was revealed that as part of its efforts to expand casino gaming closer to New York City, a unit of Genting Malaysia was among New York’s biggest spenders on political lobbying.

Genting New York spent $1.22 million on lobbyists, the sixth-highest tally among all groups, according to the recently released New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics 2020 Annual Report.

Genting already owns Resorts World New York City (RWNY) in Queens, as well as Resorts World Catskills in the northern part of the state.

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Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot last week extended the deadline for bids for the city’s long-sought first-ever casino amid waning interest from big-league gaming and hospitality operators.

The city began taking proposals from developers interested to build and operate a casino resort within city limits this past April.

Mayor Lightfoot had set an August 23 deadline for bids, but these can now be submitted until October 29. Chicago’s top official said Friday that the new deadline would give potentially interested groups “more time to fully assess” the opportunity and to “assemble more competitive bid packages.”

Chicago was one of six cities that were permitted to host Las Vegas-style casinos for the first time under a comprehensive gambling bill signed into law by Illinois Gov. J. B. Pritzker in the summer of 2019.

Mayor Lightfoot put out the formal request for proposals this spring after the city secured a legislative fix lowering the originally proposed casino tax rate from an “onerous” 70% to around 40%.

The official said on Friday that extending the deadline “will allow the City to collect as many robust, impactful and transformative proposals as possible” and that she is looking forward to seeing all the bids the city will receive and working “very closely with whichever team is ultimately chosen to develop Chicago’s first-ever casino.”

Casino Powerhouses Show No Interest in Chicago

Analysts say the two-month deadline extension could be a signal that there is a lack of interest in what some consider a risky endeavor. MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment, Inc. have been among the companies to have recently said they will not submit a proposal for a casino in Chicago.

During the company’s quarterly call last week, Caesars CEO Tom Reeg said that he’s “got no interest in Chicago.”

MGM last year participated in Chicago’s non-binding request for information process, along with 10 other groups. However, the company’s CEO, Bill Hornbuckle, said last month that “Chicago is just complicated” and that “the history there in Chicago, the tax, and the notion of integrated resort at scale don’t necessarily marry up.”

Wynn Resorts, another major US casino operator with strong presence in key markets around the nation, had initially expressed interest in Chicago, but last month announced that it would not pursue expansion in that particular market.

That leaves Rush Street Gaming, a Chicago-based regional casino operator, the sole confirmed interested suitor. It is unclear if the company has already submitted a bid, though.

Rush Street operates Rivers Casino Des Plaines, Illinois’ highest grossing casino, and is also in the running for a new casino in Waukegan.

However, a potential Chicago proposal from this group could hit a bit of a political roadbump as the daughters of Rush Street’s chair, Neil Bluhm, have contributed more than $200,000 to Ms. Lightfoot’s mayoral campaign fund.

Source: Calling a redeal: Lightfoot pushes back casino application deadline, hoping to draw some action to the table, Chicago Sun-Times, August 6, 2021

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Pariplay, an Aspire Global-owned provider and aggregator of online casino content, has teamed up with LatAm-focused games creator Caleta Gaming to integrate its entire portfolio to the Fusion platform.

Pariplay’s Fusion aggregation platform hosts thousands of games from the industry’s top game developers as well as a suite of back-office conversion and retention tools that are all designed to enhance player value.

Founded in 2013 in Brazil, Caleta develops and supplies a wide range of online slots, video bingo, keno, lotto, and instant games. These are all created to appeal to a large cross-section of players across the Latin American region and beyond.

Caleta also has an office in Gibraltar and offers agile and seamless API Integration of its content to both online casino operators and aggregation platforms.

The company has 16 of its most popular titles certified for Colombia’s regulated online gaming space, which Pariplay itself has been working to expand its presence in. It was less than three months ago when Pariplay launched a selection of its proprietary content with the Colombian operation of Spanish gambling giant Codere.

Caleta has enjoyed a rapid growth in Latin America, which has recently been recognized with a nomination in the Best Bingo Supplier category at this year’s EGR B2B Awards.

New Deal Fits Perfectly with Pariplay’s Strategic Goals

The newly formed partnership between Caleta and Pariplay will see the former add its full suite of content to the latter’s Fusion aggregator ahead of its imminent roll-out in multiple regulated markets around the world.

Commenting on this new alliance, Pariplay Business Development Director Jose Micallef said that with LatAm being a region that offers huge potential, it is vital to provide operators with the “widest possible selection of games that hold appeal” for their players.

He went on that their partnership with Caleta, which is an “ambitious provider renowned for producing high-quality content with a strong focus on LatAm markets”, fits in perfectly with Pariplay’s strategic goals for that region and that they are looking forward to achieving great things together.

Caleta CEO Fabíola Jaeger said that they are very excited to team up with Pariplay and that very soon more than 75 of their gaming titles will be available to a number of online gambling operators that are part of Pariplay’s network.

This is the latest in a series of important partnerships announced by Pariplay in recent weeks. Last month, the company announced that it has entered into an agreement to integrate content from Stockholm-based studio Thunderkick onto the Fusion platform.

It was in June again when the provider formed a partnership with BOSS. Gaming Solutions to roll out its proprietary content across its partner’s online casino brands.

Source: Caleta Gaming content deal bolsters Pariplay offering across LatAm, Pariplay Newsroom, August 6, 2021

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Gambling software giant Scientific Games has acquired Sydney-based independent online casino games maker Lightning Box in a move that will further help it execute on its wider vision to become a leading, cross-platform global provider of content for the gaming industry.

The company further pointed out that the transaction marks an important step forward for its strategic plan to establish itself as a content-led sustainable growth gambling provider.

The acquisition of the online slots-making specialist is also set to help Scientific Games continue to capitalize on the largest growth opportunities that it comes across, with a focus on digital gaming markets.

Lightning Box will join a host of in-house studios that produce content exclusively for Scientific Games and its operator partners.

The Sydney-based studio was established all the way back in 2004 by casino game development veterans Peter Causley and David Little. Lightning Box is a leading developer of content for both the online and land-based industries.

The developer has a long-standing content distribution partnership with Scientific Games and its products have been part of the latter company’s OpenGaming platform in the US since its early days.

The partnership between the two companies will facilitate the ongoing integration of Lightning Box into its new parent company’s operations and will enable it to continue to focus on crafting and delivering new exciting content while also benefiting from Scientific Games’ comprehensive range of resources.

Excited to Welcome Studio’s Talented Team

Commenting on the acquisition of Lightning Box, Dylan Slaney, SVP Gaming, Digital at Scientific Games, said that the studio’s games are hugely popular with online slots aficionados around the world and that they are excited to welcome its talented game designers to their team.

Mr. Slaney went on to note that their strategy is pretty simple – “talented, passionate people make great games” – and that the addition of the Lightning Box team comes as yet another example of this and of how they will continue to cement themselves as an iGaming industry leader.

Lightning Box CEO and co-founder Peter Causley said that joining Scientific Games and working even more closely with its team “comes at the perfect time to drive forward our ambitious product innovation plans.”

Mr. Causley went on to note that from working with Scientific Games for years now, they already know the company has the capabilities to propel their games to new heights and that Lightning Box is now in a “better position than ever to bring our robust pipeline of high-quality slots more effortlessly to our global online casino partners.

Lightning Box and Scientific Games recently celebrated another big milestone – the launch of the former’s content in West Virginia via the OpenGaming ecosystem.

Source: Scientific Games Acquires Lightning Box, August 4, 2021

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Two women were found on a hotel bed shot dead Tuesday in a room at Las Vegas’ Palms Place Hotel & Spa, part of the Palms Casino Resort. Their deaths may be a murder-suicide, Metro police revealed.

The couple also may have been “at least somewhat romantically involved” based on a note found in the room, Las Vegas Metro Police Lt. Ray Spencer revealed.

What we believe from evidence inside the room [is] that this is going to be a murder-suicide investigation,” Spencer added in a press conference held near the hotel.

He explained it was about 3 pm when Metro police were first notified about the deaths at the upscale hotel, which is located near the Las Vegas Strip.

A short time earlier, security guards from the hotel tried to enter the room because the two guests failed to check out at the required time. Check-out time for all Palms’ guests is 11:00 am.

But in the afternoon the security latch remained fastened from the inside of the hotel room. The door could not be opened from the hallway.

The guards then called hotel maintenance workers, and with their help, the door eventually was forced open.

Dead Bodies on Bed

That is when the employees saw the two dead bodies. Both women were Black and believed to be in their mid to late 30s, Spencer said. They may have been local residents, he added.

Police also are looking into whether they died at the same time. Police will also review hotel video to help put events together.

Also, autopsy results on the two women will be a key part of the inquiry. The local coroner’s office additionally will formally identify the women.

The crime led many Metro officers to respond to the hotel. Traffic was diverted from the nearby area.

Anyone with information on the deaths may call Metro police at 702-828-3521.

Rapper Killed in Hotel in 2014

In an unrelated violent incident seven years ago, rapper Evan Plunkett, 25, was fatally shot during a fight in the Palm’s Fantasy Tower. The struggle took place while a music video was being filmed.

Jim Johnson of Las Vegas was sentenced to between 18 months and eight years in prison for the crime. He claimed it was an accident and he was unaware the gun was loaded.

It accidentally went off in a struggle, Johnson said. Initially, it was being used as a prop in the music video.

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