BetMGM is facing a potential lawsuit from an online casino player after refusing to pay millions in winnings, claiming there was a glitch in the game.
Become a Millionaire in 5 Days
Starting March 18, Jacqueline Davis played the Luck O’ Roulette online fixed-odds game for five days straight, experiencing the ups and downs that most gamblers experience. However, she was mostly enjoying the ups and turned an initial $50 investment into $11 million at one moment when she used the max table bet of $5,000. When a losing streak brought her down to $3 million, though, she decided to quit playing and withdraw her winnings.
Davis visited the MGM Grand in Detroit in order to request a $100,000 advance payment against her winnings. There was nothing to indicate that there had been any issues with her hot streak but, when she went back the following day to receive the rest, her streak was extinguished by the casino. MGM Grand personnel explained that the game had malfunctioned and that she wasn’t entitled to any further payout, other than the $100,000 she had already received. Even that payout came with conditions.
The incident caused Davis a lot of frustration and she proceeded to try to find support anywhere she could. She even contacted a local media out and, during an interview, was asked whether she had known the system was malfunctioning because she continued to win. Davis was surprised and replied that there was no reason for her to quit because the “purpose of gambling is to win.”
$100K to “Keep Quiet”
MGM told Davis that she could keep the $100,000 she had received, but only if she was willing to sign a confidentiality agreement to keep the glitch under wraps. However, she was warned that, if news about the malfunction ever got out, she would have to return the money and compensate BetMGM for its costs.
According to the player’s lawyer, David Steingold, BetMGM cannot use the glitch in its defense because, even if there was a malfunction in the online roulette game, the operator was in violation of regulatory requirements. “They were instructed by regulation to check this every single night, every 24 hours. And my client played for five straight days.”
David Steingold Calls Out BetMGM
Further questioning the glitch issue, Steingold would like to know how that glitch affected the total made by BetMGM on the “Luck O’ the Roulette” online game and whether other gamblers playing during the time span of the glitch got their losses reimbursed.
When contacted by the media, BetMGM’s attorney in New Jersey refused to comment on the story and hung up the phone. A similar case in the UK got its resolution recently after a court ruling in favor of the player forced the operator to pay his winnings in full.