Flash Money Laundering Casino In London Gets License Revoked

It is not, despite all that Hollywood might suggest, just in Las Vegas that criminals have close links to Casinos. They might bury fewer bodies in the desert but they are still there. The average punter, of course, uses online sportsbook sites in the UK like Bet365 to get their kicks. The high rollers, however, require more atmosphere. The Park Lane Club is an establishment specifically for them. It’s just a shame the gambling commission calls it a money laundering casino, isn’t it?

Disguising your income is a tricky business. Especially if you’ve stolen the money you’re trying to hide. There are a few places you can claim to have found several million Euros. So for many in the criminal world, a money laundering casino is an answer to their prayers. Typically, reputable casinos check their high rollers. Partly to ensure they have the money they claim, but also to avoid the adverse publicity of later discovering the money isn’t theirs. The Park Lane Club didn’t.

In one of the most fashionable, and expensive, areas of London it was a mecca for a certain sort of gambler. A money laundering casino nestled but a stone’s throw from Buckingham Palace. The gambling commission revoking their license just the latest of encounters the club has had with authority. Indeed anyone familiar with UK gambling laws and their application will perhaps recognize this club. The Gambling Commission has but recently fined them some £1.8 million. 

Commission Closes Money Laundering Casino

That was for failure to carry out accurate and adequate due diligence checks. Prior to that, they warned it about failing to stop potential problem gambling. This then is just the latest in a progression of problems with the Park Lane Club. A money laundering casino was never going to last long. Especially not one that Vasilijis Melnik owns. Rumored to be involved in embezzling in a deal with Naftogaz he’s not the sort of chap the Gambling Commission likes to own casinos in the UK.

The Gambling Commission removing a license is a final step. They made it very clear they were “not satisfied as to the source of funds” employed to buy and run the casino. That’s pretty damning. Sure, it could just be because his accountants haven’t complied with requests. That they’ve not divulged all the necessary details. However, this seems unlikely. This was obviously a money laundering casino. Its activities are why people prefer online betting sites in the UK like Bet365.

Bet365 A Better Alternative To Physical Casinos In 2020

The record-keeping at online bookies in the UK is far more transparent. Their algorithms automating the functions of the Park Lane Club overlooked. This isn’t the 1960s anymore. Times have moved on. People now don’t need to dress up and pose to bet on poker or play blackjack. There are online options that are far more accessible and suffer from far fewer drawbacks. Not least of which is not needing to travel to partake. These days nothing is more than a click away. 

Indeed perhaps this is a sign of things to come. The government has signaled it wants to take a firmer hand with the gambling industry in the UK. This could just be them starting. Fortunately, for most of us, the loss of a few money laundering casinos run by dodgy people won’t bother us. We bet on sports in the UK at sites like Bet365, we’re not high rollers. Perhaps that’s why we have little sympathy for them or those that facilitate them gambling away stolen money.

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We take a look at the Park Lane Club losing its license as the Gambling Commission accuses it of being a money laundering casino.