Now here’s something you don’t hear every day – Nevada gaming officials track down an unknown winner to give them their prize money. Apparently, the gamer in question had a faulty machine that didn’t notify him of his win.
Gambling in Nevada is a highly regulated and highly profitable industry. While we’re all familiar with the Nevada Gaming Commission – the guys that enact regulations and grant licenses – the Nevada Gaming Control Board handles the operational side of things. In fact, the Gaming Control Board has many divisions ranging from audit to law enforcement. In fact, the Board says it is their duty to provide strict regulation of the gaming industry, protect the gaming public, and ensure that the industry benefits the State of Nevada. That protect part is the reason why the unwitting winner got his money, which wasn’t an easy task.
Nevada Gaming Officials Track Down Unknown Winner
An out-of-town visitor won a progressive jackpot at Treasure Island on January 8, 2022. However, due to a malfunction, neither the visitor nor the casino knew anything about the jackpot. Eventually, the casino found the malfunction, though their lucky winner already left. How? I’m not sure. What we do know, though, is that the folks at the Nevada Gaming Control Board were notified of the issue.
Once the Gaming Control Board investigated the issue, they then took on a more difficult task – identifying the winner. Apparently, they did so by analyzing hours of surveillance videos from several casinos, interviewed witnesses, sifted through electronic purchase records, and even looked through rideshare data provided by the Nevada Transportation Authority and a rideshare company. Eventually, they determined that the winner was Arizona resident Robert Taylor.
After another round of checks, the Gaming Board notified Taylor of his $229,000 jackpot on January 28. Officials say Taylor was to pick up his winning the weekend of February 5th.
Final Thoughts
I’m thoroughly impressed by the efforts taken by the Nevada Gaming Control Board to get Taylor his rightful winnings. At the same time, this kind of thing makes sense. Nevada has an invested interest in keeping its gaming industry honest, even in these extreme cases. Still, it’s interesting to see the incredible lengths they’re willing to go to get people what’s rightfully their’s. Honest as they are, though, the house still always wins. Ask me how I know 😝. My 2021 win/loss statement doesn’t lie lol!