Steve Wynn Claims Manicurist Played Him for $7.5 Million
A report was filed in connection with a Massachusetts Gaming Commission investigation into Wynn’s harassment charges.
(Bloomberg) -- Steve Wynn was sitting on the top of the world in 2005.
In a spectacular comeback, the casino mogul had just opened his glittering new $2.75 billion Wynn Las Vegas hotel on the Strip, with a Ferrari dealership in the lobby and his name in gold letters on top, something he said his employees insisted on. Then, according to Wynn, he got scammed by a manicurist who worked at the company.
A report filed Tuesday in connection with a Massachusetts Gaming Commission investigation into allegations of sexual harassment at Wynn Resorts Ltd. included Wynn’s own testimony on the event that led to his downfall. “It started off as a manicure,” he said in a 2017 deposition in an unrelated case that was included in the report.
The former chief executive officer, now 77, said he was sitting in a T-shirt and loose-fitting shorts when the manicurist, who hasn’t been named, started rubbing his leg. “I realize now I should have reported it,” he said.
Instead, Wynn said, he had sex with the woman, who later claimed the casino mogul raped and impregnated her. Wynn paid $7.5 million to settle the allegations, a deal that wasn’t disclosed to state regulators who investigated the company’s suitability for a casino license in Massachusetts in 2013.
More than a year after Wynn stepped down over allegations of sexual misconduct, regulators and investors are still piecing together what happened. In the wake of his departure, the company was fined $20 million by Nevada gaming regulators over its failure to investigate allegations. Wynn Resorts also has made attempts to restore its image: Under CEO Matt Maddox, the company added women to its board and overhauled its policies.
Separate Fight
Wynn’s testimony came in a separate legal fight with his former investment partner and his ex-wife. Massachusetts officials are weighing whether the company is fit to operate the $2.6 billion Encore Boston Harbor resort that’s set to open in June.
Why though did Wynn pay all that money when he was the victim?
“Along comes this gal who had a turn with me, obviously being advised on what to do,” Wynn said in the deposition. “Anybody who is over 10 years old and knows what goes on in the world knows what happens next. The story gets sensational. . . . So in this context, 7 1/2 million was not a significant number. And I paid it.”
To contact the reporters on this story: Christopher Palmeri in Los Angeles at cpalmeri1@bloomberg.net;Janelle Lawrence in Boston at jlawrence62@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net, Rob Golum
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