The head of the OPP branch at the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario says its reaching out to investigators in British Columbia about the money laundering investigation that implicated Great Canadian Gaming, the company that has been operating race tracks in Ontario for over a decade and recently won a multi-billion dollar contract to operate several GTA gaming operations, including a future casino at Woodbine Racetrack.
Chief OPP Supt. Bill Price says his officers are reaching out to agencies in BC, including the RCMP, to ask about the latest in the money laundering case at River Rock Casino.
It is owned and operated by Great Canadian Gaming.
Earlier this week, police in BC arrested 2 men behind a money transfer company called Silver International Investment.
Caixuan Qin and Jian Jun Zhu are accused of hiring gamblers from China to go on gaming trips to River Rock with hockey bags full of laundered cash.
The allegation is that Silver International was being used as an illegal bank.
These charges come on the heels of the release of a report on anti-money laundering efforts commissioned by the BC government that was previously listed as 'confidential.'
The report was made public last month, after it had been kept a secret for more than a year.
It accuses staff at River Rock Casino of knowingly accepting millions of dollars worth of suspicious cash transactions.
The allegation is that the company allowed the flow of dirty money through high-roller gamblers from China.
Authorities believe there's a possibility that the alleged money laundering is tied to an international drug ring.
The revelations came some 8 weeks after it was announced that Great Canadian won a 22-year casino contract from Ontario Lottery & Gaming, the Crown corporation in charge of gambling in Ontario.
Price says the AGCO was notified of the allegations surrounding Great Canadian the day the report was released, and word was passed on to officials at OLG.
He claims authorities in Ontario were not notified immediately after the BC investigation had been completed.
"Certainly we have some concerns about what's been outlined in the report but we're not jumping to conclusions," Price says.
He adds that as far as the OPP and the AGCO knows, Great Canadian is not under criminal investigation.
Price says his office is following further developments in the case, adding that investigators are "paying attention" to what comes out of a newly-announced BC government probe into money laundering at BC casinos.
Officials with the AGCO say the regulator is looking into "reporting or other obligations the AGCO may require from (Great Canadian)" and that they're sharing information with the OPP and RCMP.
Price stresses that "its too early" to say what kind of impact the investigation could have on the company's license to operate gambling operations in Ontario.
When asked whether or not at any point in the bidding process the company notified authorities in Ontario that it was under investigation in connection with this case, Sonja Mandic, a spokesperson with Great Canadian Gaming, issued a written statement:
"Great Canadian is in good standing with all regulatory bodies and is not under investigation in any jurisdiction."
NEWSTALK 1010 also pressed for an explanation for the allegations made in the report that staffers knowingly accepted suspicious cash transactions.
"Great Canadian strictly adheres to all regulatory requirements and maintains the highest standards of reporting at all of the company’s properties, and works diligently to meet or exceed the expectations of the regulatory organizations," Mandic says.
Ontario's Finance Minister is the politician in charge of OLG and was party to setting up the bid criteria for the casino contract.
Charles Sousa told NEWSTALK 1010 this week that he was not aware of the allegations against Great Canadian.