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May. 16, 2008
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Retired hoops star owes LV resort

Barkley must repay $400,000 to avoid criminal charges

By KEN RITTER
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Retired basketball star Charles Barkley speaks in July at the Ante Up for Africa charity poker tournament in Las Vegas.
Photo by The Associated Press

Charles Barkley acknowledged on Thursday he owes a $400,000 gambling debt to Wynn Las Vegas and promised to repay it after a prosecutor said the retired basketball star faced criminal charges.

"My mistake," Barkley said in an interview at a pro-am golf tournament in Hoover, Ala. "I'm not broke, and I'm going to take care of it."

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    • Barkley was one of five casino players the Strip property filed lawsuits against on Wednesday to recover unpaid credit. The separate lawsuits filed in Clark County District Court range from $10,000 to $650,000 owed by a resident of Philadelphia.

    Barkley was responding to comments by Clark County District Attorney David Roger, who said his office would file a criminal complaint if the former National Basketball Association star did not pay the debt cited by the Wynn Las Vegas.

    "He'll have an opportunity like anybody else to make restitution to the hotel," Roger said.

    Casino companies file complaints with the district attorney's bad check unit simultaneously with filing lawsuits to recover bad markers and bad checks.

    The casino alleged in the four-page complaint that Barkley failed to repay four $100,000 casino markers the casino gave him on Oct. 18 and 19.

    "To date, and despite repeated demands, Barkley has refused to repay the $400,000," the complaint said.

    In a radio interview with sports station WJOX in Birmingham, Ala., Barkley repeatedly blamed himself for letting the debt lapse.

    He told radio interviewers and a reporter at the golf tournament that the debt stemmed from a wager on the 2008 Super Bowl. He did not explain why Wynn alleged the loans were made in October.

    "I've been gambling 20 years. I've never had this happen before," the 45-year-old Barkley told WJOX. "It's my fault I let the time lapse. I screwed up."

    A Wynn Las Vegas spokeswoman declined to comment, stating it is company policy not to comment on ongoing litigation.

    MGM Mirage Senior Vice President of Public Affairs Alan Feldman said collecting on markers is a daily activity for his company, which owns 10 casinos on the Strip. However, he added that debtors represent only a small fraction of the "tens of thousands people" that come through the properties in a month.

    "It does happen fairly regularly," Feldman said. "At any given time, there is collection action going on against someone."

    It is unknown whether Barkley has outstanding debts at other casinos.

    Wynn Las Vegas, which generated $642.3 million in revenue last year with total revenue for the property at $1.3 billion, has filed 12 lawsuits this year seeking to recover unpaid credit extended to players.

    The largest debt is $1.5 million owed by a resident from the state of New York. Another lawsuit seeks repayment of $1 million.

    Bad check unit chief Bernie Zadrowski of the district attorney's office said the Wynn has some of the best casino "collection personnel on the entire planet" and only file lawsuits and complaints as a last resort.

    "Only after they have exhausted all their best efforts do they submit it to our office for prosecution," he said. "They don't want to submit it to us because it is more work for them."

    Barkley could be granted up to six months to pay if he agrees to the standard district attorney's office restitution program, Zadrowski said.

    Barkley would be responsible for the $400,000 plus a 10 percent program fee to the bad check unit totaling $40,000.

    Barkley, now a basketball analyst for Turner Network Television, denied any personal financial problems, and said the casino didn't call him before filing the complaint.

    "All they had to do is call and say, 'Hey, you owe us this money,'" he said.

    Roger said that if the case remains unresolved, as many as four felony theft or four felony bad check charges could be filed. The possible penalty for each theft conviction is one to 10 years in state prison. A conviction on a felony bad check charge could carry a one- to four-year term.

    Barkley played 16 NBA seasons for the Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns and Houston Rockets. Barkley has made no secret of his gambling over the years. He estimated during a May 2006 interview with ESPN that he'd gambled away about $10 million over the years.

    "Do I have a gambling problem? Yeah, I do have a gambling problem," Barkley said. "But I don't consider it a problem because I can afford to gamble."

    He said he never bet on basketball, and only bet in casinos. He called it a bad habit, but said he intended to continue.

    Review-Journal writer Arnold M. Knightly contributed to this report.

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    p wrote on May 19, 2008 09:09 AM: no,---->(6) months & make him pay now, he knows he owes the $$$$$. if i had $1,000, due --you would be after me & all the small betters w/law suits, right away etc. naming names in the paper for all celebs., also


    Free Nevada wrote on May 16, 2008 06:42 PM: itiswhatitis, if you get your renter or the person who hit you to sign a 'credit instrument' (like a 'marker') that can be deposited like a check and they sign it in Clark County, then that's exactly what the State will do for you. It probably violates the US constitution but nevertheless, they've been doing it since they allegedly ran the mob (and its murderous collectors) out of town.


    itiswhatitis wrote on May 16, 2008 06:40 PM: Just try and collect a judgement against a delinquent renter or someone who hits your car. If the state is going to be a collection agency for casinos, they should extend that service to all residents...


    Free Nevada wrote on May 16, 2008 06:23 PM: SB, you got that right. But what they don't realize (or if they do, they don't care) is that these sports stars almost always have connections to the top of the financial firms out there. The leaders of the big investment banks tend to take a personal interest in them because, guess what, they are sports fans and very stoked to be helping them manage their tens of millions of dollars. So when you sucker punch one like this, you have the very elite investment bankers thinking bad things about Vegas, and that comes back and makes Echelon Place or City Center Phase 2 or Encore or a new condo tower or parking garage cost 100x as much because of the juice. You can screw with a $35m/yr rapper, but not a mega sports star or movie star. Who are we to tell Wynn how to run his business, though? I mean, Krikorian got him once, if he wants it to happen again, let him keep doing stuff like this. He's even taken a pass on his friend Jack-O letting that walking cash machine slip into the hands of the LV Hilton (not a fan of his music/personal life, but no denying his earning power)!


    David wrote on May 16, 2008 02:48 PM: You would never hear about a property Like Caesars Palace divulging information about high-profile celebrities and how much money they owe the casino.

    YOU MEAN LIKE WHEN JAN JONES REVEALED THAT CELINE DION'S HUSBAND GAMBLED AS MUCH AS $1 MILLION DOLLARS?


    Lenny wrote on May 16, 2008 12:44 PM: Barkley is trying to say it was a Super Bowl bet? Does he think the public is just a bunch of friggin morons? When you make a sports bet, the $ is paid up front. You can sign 'markers' for table games like Roulette & Black Jack. That's what he did. He signed 4 markers for $100k each, lost his butt, then left. Simple as that. I blame the casino though. 99% of the time a marker is based on credit. The other 1% of the time they will give the celebrity credit - and when it bombs, they are upset about it? Hello?


    danielle wrote on May 16, 2008 11:32 AM: i completely agree with SB, they should have kept Barkley's name confidential.


    SB wrote on May 16, 2008 10:59 AM:
    Wynn Resorts just wants the attention... Bad PR move if you ask me.

    You would never hear about a property Like Caesars Palace divulging information about high-profile celebrities and how much money they owe the casino. Those tactics are better kept in-house and under the rug. Makes you look very cheesy in the eyes of other properties on the strip. These casinos want their customers to put their trust in them knowing that they are spending thousands.... and or borrowing thousands! Confidentiality is a much undervalued service.


    Jimbob wrote on May 16, 2008 10:55 AM: This guy seems to be proud of the fact that he has pissed away $10 million gambling. Since he is a complete moron, just how much of his fortune he earned playing basketball could he have left? He played in the days when massive salaries weren't the norm. I take it Wynn doesn't want his action any longer. Ha! Ha!


    JC wrote on May 16, 2008 08:40 AM: It still blows me away that our legislature instituted laws that make markers bad checks and make not paying a marker a crime. Should the State be a debt collector for a casino that plys gamblers with alcohol and freely extends credit (oh wait, not credit a check)? Give me a break! It may be a law but it's still extortion.


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