Pennsylvania Fines Video Gaming Terminal Operators Totaling $70K

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) approved consent agreements Wednesday presented by the Board’s Office of Enforcement Counsel (OEC) during its public meeting, resulting in fines totaling $70,000.

Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board fined TA Operating LLC and Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores, Inc.

Both of the approved fines involved Video Gaming Terminal (VGT) Operator Licensees: TA Operating LLC and Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores, Inc.

TA Operating LLC was fined $37,500 for its failure to have a PGCB-credentialed employee present while the VGT room at its Harrisburg store located at 7848 Linglestown Road was opened and used by patrons.

Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores, Inc. was fined $32,500 for its failure to have a PGCB-credentialed employee present while the VGT room at its Carlisle store located at 1165 Harrisburg Pike was opened and used by patrons.

According to the PGCB’s regulation, VGT establishments are required to have at least one Board-credentialed employee on site supervising the VGT area when the games are available for play.

PGCB approved recommendations by OEC for the placement of 17 individuals on Involuntary Exclusion Lists

The PGCB also approved recommendations by OEC for the placement of 17 individuals on its various Involuntary Exclusion Lists. This includes five persons who left minors unattended in order to engage in gaming activities in a casino. Four others were added for committing fraud using iGaming sites.

The five men who were placed on the Casino Involuntary Exclusion for unattended minors gambled at one of these four Pennsylvania casinos: Hollywood Casino Morgantown, Live! Casino and Hotel Philadelphia, Mount Airy Casino Resort, and Rivers Casino Philadelphia.

Adults are prohibited from leaving minors unattended in the parking lot, a hotel, or other venues at a casino. It creates a potentially unsafe and dangerous environment for the children.

Four individuals were placed on the iGaming Involuntary Exclusion List

The eight other individuals placed on the Casino Involuntary Exclusion List were for various offenses. The four persons placed on the iGaming Involuntary Exclusion List were:

• Two individuals together created 5 separate online accounts using the personal information of other individuals;
• A person used an online gaming account and illegally requested and received chargebacks to a credit card totaling $3,250; and,
• An individual used an online gaming account and illegally requested and received chargebacks to a credit card totaling $5,800.

Since its inception, 1,247 persons have been placed on the Casino Involuntary Exclusion List. Including the people who were added Wednesday, a total of 51 individuals are currently on the iGaming Involuntary Exclusion List.

The PGCB remains committed to keeping individuals who have committed fraud from gaming online in Pennsylvania.

The next PGCB meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024, at 10 a.m. in the Board’s Public Hearing Room. It is located on the second floor of the Strawberry Square Complex in Harrisburg.