A jockey who changed his name by deed poll so he could bet on his own races has been banned from the sport for eight years by the racing authority in Australia’s Northern Territory.

Veteran jockey Terry Treichel had been riding in the states of New South Wales and Queensland for many years before moving to the Northern Territory in late 2019. Once there, he changed his name to Daniel Jack Smith, but continued to compete as Treichel while opening multiple betting accounts in his new name.

In March, Smith, 49, was slapped with 32 charges by Thoroughbred Racing Northern Territory (TRNT). There were 29 counts of betting on races he was competing in and two of making false declarations to the racing authority, including falsely declaring his name to be Terry Treichel on the jockey license application form.

‘Never Before Seen’

Sixteen of the betting charges related to bets on his own horse and 11 on other horses in races he was involved in. However, the TRNT investigation found no evidence of corruption in those 11 races in that it was satisfied Smith had not deliberately tried to lose the races to increase his chances of winning bets. It was also satisfied that no other individual had been involved in the deception.

It was determined that Smith placed 174 bets on races he played no part in via his various betting accounts. These bets yielded a profit of more than A$10,000 ($7,077).

Smith pleaded guilty to all 32 charges.

This is a unique set of circumstances not seen before in Australian Racing,” the stewards’ report read. “The covering of a change of identity and subsequent volume of betting whilst licensed as a jockey is unprecedented.”

What’s in a Name?

Treichel was a successful competitor. He finished second in the Northern Territory Jockey Premiership in the 2019 season and had ridden 12 winners in 2020 at the time of his suspension last December.

TRNT stewards began their investigation on December 18 last year after receiving allegations that Smith had placed bets on races at the Alice Springs meeting held on December 6, 2020.

Stewards said in the course of their investigation they analyzed the forensic imaging of mobile phone data, conducted an expanded audit of multiple betting accounts, and extensively reviewed races held in the Northern Territory between July 2019 and December 2020.

“It was apparent that as one of the betting accounts was opened in 2015, there is potential for further investigations to be conducted by Racing NSW and Racing Queensland, since he was a licensed jockey in these two states at the time,” the racing authority said.

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When New York picks its mobile sports betting platform providers, it’ll be the state’s Gaming Commission making those key decisions.

On Friday, the Commission released a 10-page document providing some answers to questions on the application process. State officials answered 92 questions from interested parties.

Earlier this month, New York state lawmakers approved a mobile sports betting concept in the annual budget. Under the plan, the state plans to award licenses to at least two platform providers that will work with at least four mobile sports betting operators. Gov. Andrew Cuomo hopes that as the market matures New York will get upwards of $500 million in revenue annually.

The state will issue the licenses through a competitive request-for-applications (RFA) process.

The budget requires the RFA to be released by July 1. After its release, bidders will have 30 days to submit their applications, with the Commission expected to award licenses no more than 150 days after the final submission.

State Sen. Joseph Addabbo, D-Queens, who helped draft the mobile sports betting language, has said he would like to see operators taking bets by the Super Bowl.

Retail Sports Betting Deals Not Relevant

State law requires the servers for a commercially licensed casino to host the servers for a platform provider. There are four such facilities, all of which are in upstate New York. In the document released Friday, the Gaming Commission said only it will determine where servers are placed.

Currently, each of the four casinos has established relationships with sportsbooks. However, state officials said that will not have any bearing on its decision-making process.

Contracts between commercial casinos and operators of their in-house sports wagering will have no relevance to the RFA,” the Gaming Commission said. “The RFA is open to all qualified platform providers and operators, and awards will be made to the highest scoring applicants.”

It also appears that the casinos will get a $5 million annual fee for hosting a provider’s server whether they actually do or not. In addition, platform providers would also be responsible for “reasonable and actual costs” related to the server, including any upgrades a casino has to make in order to house the equipment needed.

Placing the servers at the commercially licensed casinos is also how the state appears to be avoiding – or at least attempting to avoid – issues related to tribal gaming exclusivity zones. The state believes the bet will take place at the server and not the physical location of the bettor.

During the negotiations between Cuomo and lawmakers, the Oneida Indian Nation raised concerns that the mobile sports betting language would exclude them and therefore violate the gaming compact it has with the state.

The state, though, has said that platform providers who have revenue-sharing agreements with tribal nations would receive additional points toward their bid.

NY Gaming Commission Doesn’t Expect Future Expansion

Once the Gaming Commission receives all timely submissions, it said that it will determine how many licenses to award, indicating that may be more than two if that helps “maximize revenue” for New York.

The revenue will be generated through a tax on the platform providers. According to the state, the tax rate will be set according to the highest rate offered by an applicant based on the number of providers the state awards.

In addition, the Commission said the operators picked by the providers for their application must remain on it throughout the selection process. Also, the state will not let operators deduct any free play or promotions from their gross gaming revenue.

The Commission also expects to release an initial draft of mobile sports betting regulations by the time the solicitation comes out.

“Traditionally, for major rulemaking, the Commission has sought industry comment, pre-publication,” it said.

Those draft regulations will include whether state officials will require operators to use official league data to grade any wagers.

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Churchill Downs Inc. has pulled the plug on the plan to build a hotel at its historic namesake track. However, company officials are still looking to expand in the Louisville-based gaming company’s hometown.

Company officials first floated the idea of a trackside hotel nearly two years ago as part of a $300 million expansion. However, company officials hit the pause button a year ago as the COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected the hospitality industry.

CEO Bill Carstanjen told analysts on Churchill Downs’ quarterly report call Thursday that the company used the pause to re-evaluate a number of different factors, including the region’s hotel occupancy and room rates.

We may decide to build a hotel at the racetrack in the future, but now is not the right time,” he said. “We think we have excellent alternative projects that offer better returns on our capital over shorter periods, both at the racetrack and Derby City Gaming.”

Churchill Downs’ plans for the track involve a series of three upgrades over the next three years. That would culminate in 2024 with what would be the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby.

Each project would be ready in time for the Kentucky Derby, and the 2024 project would be the “most transformative,” Carstanjen said. He added that further details will be revealed in upcoming quarterly calls.

Churchill Downs Units Post Record Quarters

From a financial standpoint, one of the company’s biggest successes came from Derby City Gaming, its historical horse racing (HHR) venue that’s located about 5 miles from the track.

Carstanjen told analysts that the company is weighing options to build additional gaming space at Derby City, to the point officials are getting construction estimates.

Other bright spots for Churchill Downs included TwinSpires, its online wagering platform, and its casino gaming operations. Both also produced record results to start the year.

TwinSpires horse racing division generated net revenues of $93.1 million. That’s an increase of 39 percent from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, Churchill Downs casinos generated an adjusted EBITDA of $82.4 million, up 72 percent from the first quarter of 2020.

Company-wide, Churchill Downs reported net revenue of $324.3 million for the quarter, an increase of 28 percent. Net income rose sharply from the year prior. Officials reported $36.1 million for the most recent quarter, compared to a net loss of $23.4 million from the same period last year. Quarterly EBIDTA doubled from the year prior at $110.6 million.

Next Move Downtown Louisville?

Carstanjen also gave clear signs the company may expand its footprint elsewhere in the city, meaning Churchill Downs may look to build a satellite HHR parlor.

Under Kentucky racing regulations, Churchill Downs can also build a satellite facility within 60 miles of the track. Well within that range, as Carstanjen noted, is downtown Louisville.

The satellite facility could be used to help steer people away from Caesars Southern Indiana. That full-fledged casino is about a 15-minute drive from downtown Louisville.

The purpose behind the annex would be to maximize Churchill Downs’ return on investment in Louisville and not take away from what Carstanjen called a proven product in Derby City Gaming.

We have a lot of analytics on where our customers come from,” he explained. “Where do we see ZIP Codes in the metropolitan area that we don’t draw from that we think maybe go across the river. We have done a ton of work to figure out where are the strong spots for Derby City gaming, where are the weak spots, and where do the conventioneers who come to the city go. Do they go across the river? Do they go to Derby City Gaming?”

HHR is an option because state lawmakers passed legislation to give the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) the ability to legalize and regulate HHR. That was needed after the state’s Supreme Court issued an opinion that determined the KHRC did not have the authority to approve new types of pari-mutuel wagering.

HHR machines have the look and feel of slot machines at casinos. However, where Class II slots use electronic bingo to determine winners and class III slots use random number generators, HHR machines use previously run races to determine winners.

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Powerball had hoped to expand to Australia this year to boost sales and revenue. But those plans are being put on hold.

The Idaho Lottery has been participating in Powerball, the multistate lottery game owned and operated by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), for more than three decades. But state lawmakers said passed legislation to end its MUSL membership should Powerball expand to Australia. 

Idahoans in the state legislature voiced concerns that Australian states and territories participating in Powerball could use their lottery revenue from the game to further advocate anti-gun policies both at home and in foreign relations. 

But with MUSL revealing that Powerball’s expansion to Down Under will not happen this year, the Idaho Lottery says it will stay in the association through at least 2021. 

Businesses Relieved

The potential decision to withdrawal from MUSL and Powerball participation certainly would have come with repercussions for some Idahoans. 

Lottery retailers that sell Powerball tickets receive commissions on each ticket sold. Of the $2 Powerball purchase price, the retailer — such as a convenience store owner — pockets a five percent commission, or 10 cents. Retailers also receive financial rewards when they sell a winning ticket. As example, the convenience store that sold the January $731.1 million winning jackpot received a $100,000 bonus. 

Large Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots also push customers into such businesses to buy tickets. Unlike some other states, the Idaho Lottery does not sell tickets online.

It’s a huge part of what brings traffic into our convenience stores. On the southern border of Utah, it’s a huge traffic point for those convenience stores, many of them claim that they are the Utah lottery because they have so many people that travel in there,” Matt Berry, president of the Idaho Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association, told KTVB7 earlier this month. 

The Idaho Lottery said more than 670,000 Idahoans played Powerball last year. Berry says the average lottery player spends twice as much in Idaho’s convenience stores as non-lottery customers.

“Not only are you missing out on lottery sales, but the extra things that the customers buy, the soda pop, the candy,” Berry added.

Powerball Expansion

Powerball is currently played in 45 states, plus DC, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands. MUSL had planned to take the game to Australia beginning this August.

“Powerball will remain available for Idahoans and others to participate in,” Idaho Lottery Director Jeff Anderson told the House State Affairs Committee this week. “That doesn’t mean that we won’t be back next year to try to address this because it’s my understanding that this (adding Australia and Britain) is inevitable. It’s just not happening in 2021.”

MUSL did not comment as to why Australia’s Powerball participation is being delayed. 

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Louisiana’s Wild Fire Casino was the site of a shooting spree late last week in front of the building. The alleged shooter, Kewondrick Hays, 22, was arrested on Saturday.

He was charged with two felonies, according to WBRZ, a local TV station. These were reported to be attempted second-degree murder and assault by a drive-by shooting, according to the West Side Journal, a local newspaper.

No one suffered injuries from the Friday afternoon gunfire. Deputies from the West Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office initially suspected the shooting followed an argument, the Journal said.

The casino is located in Port Allen. It is about four miles from Baton Rouge.

In initial reports, deputies believed Hayes was in a motor vehicle when he fired the gun.

Local police were assisted by the United States Marshals Service (USMS) in investigating the shooting and making the arrest.

“Special thanks to the USMS Task Force. We are very grateful to be a part of this task force,” Zach Simmers, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office was quoted in local media.

Details on the incident were not released. Hays’ case will be turned over to the local court for prosecution.

It was unclear this weekend if Hays remained in custody. Or, if bond was posted for his release.

If convicted on the second-degree attempted murder charge, Hays likely faces between 10 and 50 years in prison.

Prior Louisiana Casino Crimes

The recent shooting is just one of multiple crimes seen in Louisiana casinos during recent years.

In 2019, a trio of brazen bandits assaulted a security guard before fleeing with an undisclosed amount of cash from an unnamed Lake Charles casino. The guard was injured and required hospitalization.

Two of the robbers assaulted the security guard at the gaming venue during the heist. They grabbed his gun and fled the area.

In addition, in March of last year, two suspects were arrested in Lake Charles for their role in allegedly robbing and assaulting an unnamed taxi passenger. He had revealed he had just won $15,000 at a local casino.

The victim was pulled out of the cab. Once outside, the passenger was repeatedly assaulted.

An unspecified amount of money and two cellphones were stolen from the man.

While out of the cab, the victim grabbed onto the taxi’s door handle to get back into the sedan. He was unsuccessful.

Shootings Occur at US Casinos

Across the nation, several shootings have taken place recently in or near gaming properties. For instance, Detroit’s Motor City Casino parking garage was the scene of a fatal shooting of a 25-year-old man last month.

Also, at a Las Vegas Strip Grand Vacations Hilton a man killed his 15-year-old brother with a self-assembled firearm.

And on Oct. 1, 2017 a mass shooting at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay left hundreds of concert-goers dead or wounded.

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