Nevada Gaming Commission Busts Major Sports Betting Embezzlement Scheme

The now-former employee of William Hill was investigated by the Nevada Gaming Commission and the operator’s internal teams which became aware of the scheme last year.

William Hill US which was bought by Caesars Entertainment for $4 billion in 2021, has more than 100 race and sportsbook venues in Nevada. The employee who has been arrested and appeared in court, Shravan Singh, and his conspirator Paige Steiner, now faces a litany of charges, although Steiner was released without bail.

More Co-Conspirators Potentially Involved

According to 8 News Now, which has done the original reporting, there are more co-conspirators who have not been named just yet, because they have not been arrested. Essentially, Steiner faces 290 charges over fraudulent uses of vouchers for cash. The vouchers are printed directly at the machines by a person who can then cash in the vouchers.

The scheme was perpetrated on at least 166 separate dates, carried out by Singh in person, and totalled 3,000 transactions. William Hill terminated Singh’s contract on January 19, after it became aware of the scheme and had enough proof to act against him.

Upon closer scrutiny, William Hill established that the number of stolen funds was in fact much more significant, with $280,000 of money having been stolen from the company. Essentially, Singh was part of a coordinated effort within William Hill, where supervisors or customer service agents would collaborate to alter the amount of money registered at individual William Hill kiosks. 8 News Now argues that it has information about former employees of the company perpetrating similar schemes.

Once the money was added to the kiosks, the culprits would go to the devices and withdraw vouchers for cash. However, each kiosk is equipped with a number of security measures. One is that the devices take pictures of people who withdraw money and keep detailed records of what money is being put in and out. Thanks to this meticulous record keeping, the involved employees – presently two named publicly with more awaiting potential arrest – were identified.

Singh Reportedly Used His Position to Cover His Tracks

Investigators by the Nevada Gaming Control Board said that Singh was in charge of “day-to-date reporting” of kiosk cash adjustments for sums greater than $500. Singh was in a position where he could slow or just not report suspicious transactions and record altering, which made it harder for William Hill to initially realize that there was something untoward going on.

But upon having a closer look, William Hill noticed a trend – some employees would make hundreds of adjustments while others will only have a few to their name. It was the ones who were adjusting the machines at an unprecedented rate that caught the investigators’ attention.

The investigators said that Singha and his co-conspirator(s) were unable to explain why they had made so many withdrawals of vouchers and why they were seen at specific kiosks repeatedly. The detectives also looked into the suspects who were helping with cash withdrawals as well: “None of the suspects had any wagering history, which would suggest they had won thousands of dollars. Therefore, I concluded the only purpose each suspect was observed at the various kiosks was to assist Singh in embezzling money from William Hill.”

The names of other culprits may soon surface if investigators deem it necessary for them to appear before the court. Singh will now have to answer for what the court alleges is embezzlement, forgery, conspiracy to commit embezzlement, and more.