A Florida casino finance boss has explained how former premier McKeeva Bush’s gambling losses were tracked through his personal customer loyalty card.
Tracey Almeida, director of casino finance for Seminole gaming, which operates seven casinos in Florida, said the company closely monitors data from such cards to keep tabs on the win-loss ratios of gamers.
“The player’s loss is our gain. That’s our income so we keep track of that very well,” said Ms. Almeida, who appeared in person to give evidence Thursday in the trial of the United Democratic Party leader.
The jury has been supplied with what amounts to a log book of Mr. Bush’s wins and losses on slot machines in casinos in the U.S. on a series of trips between June 2009 and April 2010.
He is accused of withdrawing nearly US$50,000 cash on his government credit card and using at least some of that money to gamble.
Prosecutor Duncan Penny, QC, has already walked the jury through the figures for each of the 11 trips covered by the indictment, indicating that Mr. Bush racked up overall losses of approximately $272,000 on slots during that time.
Ms. Almeida explained how the tracking system works in the casinos operated by the Seminole tribe in Florida.
She said the former premier had an “exclusive” reward card – the highest rated of five such customer loyalty cards, offering perks such as free food and drinks to regular players.
She said the cards serve a second function of allowing the casino to closely monitor customer activity – providing them with a readout of an individual gambler’s wins and losses during a 24-hour period, from the start of the “casino day” at 7 a.m.
In one 24-hour period in April 2010, she agreed that the record showed Mr. Bush had lost just over $21,000 – part of overall losses totaling $56,000 over three days at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
She said gamblers could have multiple reward cards linked to the same account, allowing them to play on up to four machines at the same time.
In another sample 24-hour period, she agreed that the records showed Mr. Bush had three different machines in operation, sometimes simultaneously, over an eight-and-a-half hour session from just before 9:30 p.m. to around 6 a.m. the following morning.
The data also indicated huge total sums going into the machines in each session.
Asked by Justice Michael Mettyear to explain how it was physically possible to get so much money – in one instance the judge said more than $400,000 – into a slot machine, she said some of the machines allow players to bet up to $1,000 on a single spin.
She said the machines take $100 bills, but gamblers could also purchase tickets for higher amounts. She said the statistic showing the gross total figure going into the machine would also include player winnings that were reinvested in further play without being physically collected.
Under cross-examination from Mr. Bush’s counsel, William Frain Bell, she agreed it was technically possible for a player to start with a single dollar, win instantly and play for several hours with his winnings, racking up a high “gross amount in” total without having invested a significant sum.
She had earlier indicated that the critical figure as far as the casino is concerned is the win-loss column, which demonstrates whether the player or the house had finished ahead at the end of the night. This is the statistic that the court heard showed total personal financial losses to Mr. Bush of around US$272,000 in the nine-month period.
Jonathan Marquez, a supervisor in the fraud department of a company called Global Cash Access, gave evidence Wednesday about the system of ATMs and credit card cash advance machines the company operates in casinos across the U.S.
He explained how customers could either use their credit or debit cards to withdraw money using their PIN at an ATM on the casino floor, or use the machine to request larger cash advances.
He said customers who requested cash advances were given a ticket that they were required to take to a secure “cashier’s cage” and show photo ID and their card to collect the money along with a “laser check” detailing the amount advanced, as well as the company’s fee.
Speaking via video-link, Mr. Marquez agreed that company records, also supplied to the jury, showed that checks carrying McKeeva Bush’s name, government credit card number and driver’s license details, had been cashed at the Venetian Palazzo casino on the Las Vegas strip in the early hours of Feb. 18, 2010.
He accepted that these “cash against signature” transactions totaled some US$7,000, agreeing that the data showed Mr. Bush had also made an ATM withdrawal of $1,000 on the same card, several hours earlier. He agreed that the records showed Mr. Bush had made another attempted withdrawal of $1,000 at the ATM, which had been declined, before switching to the “cash-against-signature” method.
Under cross-examination, he acknowledged that his company’s records would not show why a transaction was declined.
“If you’ve already reached your limit for the day at an ATM, if you run it as a cash-advance, that would allow you to go over your limit,” he said.
The jury has been given a detailed table of withdrawals and attempted withdrawals made by Mr. Bush on his government credit card at both casino ATMs and cash-against-signature transactions at casinos during the 11 trips covered by the indictment.
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