Encore Boston Harbor fined again for taking illegal bets
EVERETT - Encore Boston Harbor is being fined again for taking illegal bets.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission is fining the casino $40,000 for taking bets on Boston College women's basketball last year. Most bets on games featuring state schools are against the law, unless the teams are taking part in a tournament.
Encore was first fined $10,000 for accepting wagers on a Boston College vs. Notre Dame women's basketball game on February 2, 2023. This was just days after sports betting became legal in Massachusetts. The other two sportsbooks in the state, MGM Springfield and Plainridge Park Casino, were also found to have allowed illegal wagers on college sports teams at the time.
Multiple illegal bets on Boston College women's basketball
But the commission says Encore again allowed illegal bets on Feb. 12, 2023 in a B.C. vs. University of North Carolina women's basketball game, and on Feb. 19, 2023 for the B.C. women vs. University of Louisville. A total of seven wagers worth $213 were placed on the two games at casino kiosks.
The Gaming Commission said certain identification numbers for B.C. women's basketball were not placed on a "blacklist" to prevent betting.
"Despite identifying the first noncompliance incident, Encore failed to resolve the underlying issue or put adequate guardrails in place, resulting in its immediate repetition," the commission said.
Commissioners also dinged Encore for initially halting women's college basketball betting as a solution.
"Such a fix, by sledgehammer rather than scalpel, is not an ideal solution," the commission said.