Alas, today’s top story is of the “If it bleeds, it leads” variety and is written out of sheer necessity, not desire. A thirty-something Latino man, Yoni Barrios, is in custody after going on a knife-wielding spree in front of Wynncore. It seems that the individual, who was packing a large kitchen knife, didn’t take well to being spurned in his request to have his photo taken with a group of showgirls. The latter, who were employed as Wynn Resorts greeters, were among the eight people who were subsequently stabbed, two fatally. Several tourists also fell victim to this Sin City iteration of Jack the Ripper, who fled the scene only to captured in front of Venelazzo, slashing one person during his attempted getaway. The assailant’s sleeves were coated in blood, so he’ll have a hard time explaining that away in court. We thought we’d seen the last of the Las Vegas Strip as a lawless frontier once tourists starting returning en masse but evidently not. And with that … words fail us.
On the other side of the country, casino revenue in Maryland last month slipped 4% from 2021 for an overall gross of $159 million. Falling 8%, MGM National Harbor took in $64 million and came within striking distance of Maryland Live, flat at $57 million. Horseshoe Baltimore grossed its usual $17 million, down 1.5%, while Ocean Downs was up 1.5% to $9 million. Hollywood Perryville dipped 5.5% to $7 million and Century Casinos‘ new trophy, Rocky Gap Resort, made $5 million for a 4% bounce.
Back in Las Vegas, some miscellaneous urban blight on the Strip will give way to a 43-story hotel tower, along with a spa, wedding chapel—and auto showroom. That’s Tilman Fertitta‘s grand plan anyway. The latter will probably be branded after upscale Post Oak Motors, firming up speculation that Tilman will employ his Post Oak brand on the hotel-casino itself, to differentiate it from his middle-class Golden Nugget chain. Of course there will be restaurants and lots of them, surely all Fertitta-owned brands. Few details are available as yet, although the hotel will hold 2,240 rooms. However, knowing Tilman, he’s not going to be content with a me-too Strip resort. Expect a lot of ‘wow’ factor.
In an increasingly desperate attempt to keep the dubious Seminole Nation sports betting compact alive, the Seminoles and Department of the Interior are advancing a bifurcated argument: namely that the compact only authorized in-person wagering but mobile betting was hunky-dory because, hey, it’s already legal under Florida law. (The latter will come as news to a lot of people, especially the ones who were trying to get mobile wagering onto the November ballot.) Gaming attorney Daniel Wallach, as usual, nailed the new contentions, calling them a “creative re-invention of the compact.” We’ll say. Aside from extending ‘tribal lands’ throughout Sunshine State cyberspace, the compact would have given the Seminoles an unlawful monopoly on sports betting. Let’s see how Interior Secretary Deb Haaland makes this turkey fly.
Jottings: Initiating coverage of Bally’s Corp., analyst Carlo Santarelli of Deutsche Bank offered a mix of caution (predominantly involving online gambling) and enthusiasm. He was particularly keen on Bally’s Tribune, which he projects to generate $745 million in annual revenue, a 12% return on investment after taxes … Unloved Belle of Baton Rouge closed for several days this week for unspecified improvements. The much-dissed hotel is undergoing a revamp, although only a stingy $1 million has been allocated to that purpose … MaximBet, formerly confined to Colorado, has begun operations in Indiana and is flexing its muscles. The company is eying four more states and Ontario. To buy Hoosier customers, MaximBet is offering $250 deposit matches, which is plenty george of them … Forget the NFL season if you’re a Massachusetts sports bettor. Wagers won’t be placed until next year, maybe in time for the Super Bowl and only at brick-and-mortar sports books. They don’t do anything hastily in the Bay State.
My wife and I were just in Las Vegas and noticed an increasing amount of homeless sleeping on the sidewalk and derelicts hanging around. In the three days we were there we only saw two Metro police officers. I think a stronger police presence on the strip would be a good thing.
When we have a defund the police narrative being screamed by many running the show in many cities. And bail is being removed and violent criminals aren’t facing consequences for their violent actions. And a border that is wide open, this is the result people. Cause effect at it’s most obvious. Is anyone awake? Will voters wake the heck up and stop playing partisan “my team is better than yours” and see reality? I have my doubts. I see a nation in decline that is turning into the most violent movie. And about half the nation clueless on the why. Sad. Tragic.
Trying to politicize a murderous rampage by a mentally ill coward does no good at all, Nevada and Las Vegas are and always will be tough on crime… This notion that a political party or philosophy can solve something as complicated as mental illness is dishonest…
No need to put the guy who stabbed people is Latino. Makes zero difference. At least readers now see you are.a bigot.
Sorry to ” politicize” the murderer, but he was an illegal migrant who should have never been in this country in the first place. We have enough home-grown criminals without importing more. Thank you, Joe and Kamala, for all the pain.
Mike: I agree, who cares if he’s white blue or orange or black. But I think you’d care that as being reported now that he is an illegal alien from Guatemala and in this country ILLEGALLY, right? So this senseless crime shouldn’t have happened at all if the law was in place at our border. So there is indeed a political aspect as you are aware(?) of the current crew running the show basically has a border that is open and millions are streaming in unchecked, right? Are you aware DC and NYC have declared states of emergency because of being overrun by illegal aliens not to mention far worse, many border cities? Please keep up and educate yourself beyond the McNews as this is indeed politics at its worse. And Nevada being tough on crime, wonderful, but that doesn’t bring back the lives of these poor people with our border being a joke and open.
Dick: Have you not read or watched the “news”? They label white, black, latino all the time. Again, it shouldn’t matter, but this is the reality of how things are reported today largely. If you are perpetually offended over everything like so many, may I suggest you lighten up if this is the biggest complaint you have on this matter. Perhaps getting worked up that an illegal alien, no matter what color or where they are from, should be your concern and that the rule of law at the border is largely a joke now. And that those 2 people would be alive today if this illegal alien weren’t in this nation illegally on the strip. Wake up.
Immigration, homelessness, and mental health are challenging current issues we have to deal with, you folks who want a simple or simpleton answer will end up disappointed invariably… The border is not “open”, or closed, and nothing will get solved until Congress makes new law. The last politician who dared to try and solve immigration was Obama, and he came close, but failed and took it on the chin. Trump had all 3 Branches of the government for 2 full years and did nothing for immigration because he knew it’s a thankless proposition. I eat fruits and vegetables for most of my diet, ask farmers about immigration and harvesting and planting crops, in a country with 3% unemployment… Horrible tragedy in Las Vegas, but molding it into a political attack does no good at all, the best way forward is facing this head on, with all stakeholders having input…
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