Philadelphia Park Casino Fined $30,000

Philadelphia Park Racetrack and Casino has been fined just under $30,000 for a January 20th incident in which a customer was initially denied a payout of $102,000.

Stephen Wilkinson, a retired carpenter from Feasterville, was playing at a Wheel of Fortune slot machine when a video message informed him that he was the winner of $102,000. The bogus message was due to a test which was being run on the machine, unknown to Mr. Wilkinson. He immediately informed casino employees of his win, but they informed him that the message was sent in error. Five days later, he received his winnings in what was called a “goodwill gesture.”

The state Gaming Control Board cited the casino for having an unlicensed worker on the casino floor, and for failing to maintain complete control over the accuracy of their systems. The casino has 20 days in which to file an appeal, and it can also request a hearing if it desires.

The fine was broken up in the following manner:

A $10,000 civil penalty

A $10,000 contribution to the state’s Compulsive and Problem Gaming Treatment Fund

A payment of $9,995 in state investigative charges

This was the first time that the board had fined any of three casinos in operation in Pennsylvania.

Personally, I have to side with the casino on this one. They did eventually pay the guy, even though he didn’t even really win. So they do the right thing and then get fined for it. Where’s the lesson in that?

I wonder what the fine would have been if they had just refused to pay in the first place? Of course, $130,00 is probably just a tiny dent in their revenue flow, so I guess it all evens out in the end. At least that retired carenter will have plenty of money for tools and lumber and stuff. Or, more than likely, he’ll lose it all back to the casino.

Philadelphia Park Casino Fined $30,000