Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada’s Universal Entertainment funneled at least $30 million to an ex-consultant for the state gambling regulator, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor), who is now at the center of a bribery investigation, according to sources and company records.
State-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) said that apart from the allegation of bribery hounding Universal Entertainment, it must settle a land ownership issue, which Pagcor described as “contentious,” at Entertainment City.
The license issued to Universal Entertainment Corp. of Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada to operate a casino in Manila will be canceled if it is found to have been obtained through bribery, Malacañang said Monday.
Lawmakers on Monday called for banning American casino tycoon Steve Wynn from putting up a gaming business in the country for denigrating state-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) as part of his gambit to forcibly oust his partner, Japanese pachinko king Kazuo Okada, in Wynn Resorts and Wynn Macau.
Former Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) chair Efraim Genuino refuted on Wednesday the accusations of US casino operator Wynn Resorts Ltd. that he received bribes from a Japanese gambling mogul when he was still at the helm of the state-run gaming firm.
The chairman of state-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) on Wednesday denied allegations made by an owner of US-based casino giant Wynn Resorts that he had received undue perks and favors from a Japanese businessman.
