Crown casino has barred 10,000 patrons, including problem gamblers and bikies
Bikies and problem gamblers are among the 10,000 patrons barred from Crown — but critics say banned punters still regularly gamble at the gaming venue.
VIC News
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Gangsters and gamblers are among the 10,000 people banned from Crown casino.
The ballooning list has sparked concern from anti-gambling advocates saying it is now too big for Crown to police and should be handed to the state regulator.
The Herald Sun can reveal more than 5000 of the barred patrons are problem gamblers who have lost fortunes and are on self-exclusion orders.
Several thousand are petty criminals, brawlers, drunks and cheats caught carrying out illegal activity at the Melbourne premises.
More than 50 people have been banned at the request of Victoria Police, including top-level organised crime figures, extreme problem gamblers, bikies and other criminals.
Crown operating officer Xavier Walsh said the casino had 4500 CCTV cameras and facial recognition technology “to identify and monitor patrons who have been excluded”. He said staff were trained in identifying when someone was in gambling difficulties and in how to intervene.
However, anti-gambling campaigner Tim Costello said punters still regularly gambled at the casino despite having banned themselves.
He called for the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation to take over monitoring the exclusion list.
A 2018 VCGLR review found concerns about Crown’s ability to monitor exclusions.
“The paradox of the exclusion system, and Crown’s primary reliance on exclusion, is that it has been very easy for excluded persons to enter the casino,” the report said.
“Despite a policy in which staff are required to intervene when observable signs of problem gambling are detected, statistics provided to the VCGLR for the review indicate a relatively low level of activity and very little by way of referral from floor staff.”
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Crown changed its program following the review.
Among the patrons known to have been banned is alleged mafia figure Antonio Madafferri, who has never been convicted of a crime and denies any mafia involvement.
He was excluded in 2014 by then chief commissioner Ken Lay and has taken legal action to remove the ban.
Disgraced jockey Danny Nikolic was put on the list in 2012, but has since had his restrictions removed.
Mr Walsh said Crown was committed to harm minimisation.
“We recently implemented a third-party exclusion process where family, friends and close associates can seek to have someone excluded,” he said.
“This provides yet another layer of assistance for those having difficulties.”