Nevada gambling regulators levied their largest fine in the state’s history against Wynn Resorts Ltd. after the Las Vegas company admitted that it systematically ignored employees’ sexual-misconduct allegations against founder and former chief executive Steve Wynn.
The Nevada Gaming Commission approved the $20 million fine in a 4-0 vote on Tuesday. The amount is almost four times larger than any previous fine by state gambling regulators.
Last month, the Nevada Gaming Control Board published a complaint against Wynn Resorts. State authorities said the probe was prompted by a Wall Street Journal article last year detailing sexual-misconduct allegations against Mr. Wynn.
The report confirmed many of the Journal’s findings and added additional examples of alleged misconduct by Mr. Wynn, much of which the board said a number of high-level executives had enabled.
Mr. Wynn has previously said the notion that he ever assaulted any women was preposterous. A lawyer for Mr. Wynn didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment for this article.
John Michela, an attorney for Nevada, testified on Tuesday at a hearing before the commission that the “pieces of paper comprising the complaint do not come close” to describing the true extent of the misconduct that the office’s investigators found. The report included allegations of rape, sexual misconduct and harassment.
“The respondents allowed conduct and circumstances to occur that have tarnished the reputation of Nevada and gaming at a level not seen since organized crime was involved in the gaming industry,” Mr. Michela said.
The company agreed to many of the findings in the board’s complaint, marking the first time it acknowledged that the high-level executives failed to respond to employees’ allegations against Mr. Wynn. It also previously agreed not to contest any fine issued by the commission.
Matthew Maddox, the current CEO of Wynn Resorts, told the commission the company had transformed itself, revamping its board, investing in its employees and working to show it is bigger than one person.
“We knew the only way to fix it was to act fast, be strong and get to the truth,” Mr. Maddox told the commission. “And I believe that’s what we did.”
Mr. Michela, representing the state, acknowledged that Wynn Resorts had made changes but implored the commissioners to take into consideration that the company didn’t institute the changes until media reports brought the issues to light.
The executives mentioned by name in the report are no longer at the company, Wynn Resorts has said.
The report also was the first regulatory action taken against Wynn Resorts related to the scandal. Gambling regulators in Massachusetts are planning to soon issue their own report after a yearlong investigation; the company is building a new casino outside Boston.