LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The Nevada Gaming Control Board has issued a gaming license, with conditions, to Fontainebleau Las Vegas President Maurice Wooden on Thursday. However, multiple concerns were brought up in the process.
That includes his past as president of Wynn Las Vegas and a current investigation into financial practices at Fontainebleau.
WATCH FULL HEARING: Fontainebleau executive's past at Wynn Las Vegas concerns Nevada gaming regulators
Wooden was president at the Wynn from 2005 through 2018. His license was placed under an administrative hold after sexual harassment allegations against chairman Steve Wynn came to light. During the hearing, commissioners said that hold was lifted on April 23, 2025.
Commissioners asked Wooden if had ever been alerted to those concerns.
"I did not know of anything about any of the wrongdoings that Mr. Wynn was accused of. I did know about an incident that was brought forward about a sheet from when he was receiving services from a masseuse where the towel kept falling off and the masseuse had complained," Wooden told commissioners. "I took that straight to the person that I reported to at that time...then, I was asked to go make sure I tell the Chairman that that was unacceptable based on the masseuse having a concern. I did share that with Mr. Wynn. He said he's not sure why there was a claim about it, but said he understood and that he would not do that again."
Wynn has repeatedly denied the assault claims. He resigned as Wynn Resorts' CEO in 2018, shortly after the allegations were published. In July 2023, Wynn reached a $10 million settlement with the Nevada Gaming Commission, which bars him from being involved with any Nevada gambling company's financing, advertising or consultation.
Wooden also told commissioners he was unaware of alleged money laundering issues at the Wynn.
"I first heard of that matter probably six months ago. I was not involved, at all, in any discussions, have never been in any discussions, have never been asked any questions as it relates to that," Wooden explained. "It's a whole separate division and I think corporate environment that was dealing with that matter."
However, commissioners said that wasn't a good enough answer.
"You were the president of the Wynn at the time. You do have responsibility, whether it's directly or indirectly," Commissioner Brian Krolicki said. "We, as a commission, as a gaming control board, have been living past transgressions real-time, and it's unpleasant for everyone."
"It's not enough anymore to be like, 'I didn't know. I'm the president, but I didn't know.' You've got to be in the weeds," chair Jennifer Togliatti said. "Otherwise, you're in the dark, and it's a bad place to be when you're here."
During the hearing on Thursday to decide if Wooden should receive an unlimited gaming license, Wooden told commissioners his management style has changed, and he plans to be more hands-on.
"If we manage from our offices, shame on us. We all need to manage by being out in the property, and that is constantly reinforced in our leadership team," Wooden said. "It's everybody's job to be out there looking for the kind of culture that we want to be successful in our environment."
While answering commissioners' questions, another issue came to light: an investigation that is underway at Fontainebleau.
"We have in our materials that there's an investigation ongoing with respect to the credit practices not being followed, which could have potential Title 31 and AML (anti-money laundering) implications," Commissioner Rosa Solis-Rainey said.
Stacie Michaels, chief administrative officer at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, told commissioners the issue came about due to a routine audit by gaming regulators.
"They had done a credit review and in the draft of our audit report, we were notified that there were some, maybe, missteps in policy that were not followed with regards to a few handful of credit accounts, and being a brand new property, that's not unusual," Michaels told commissioners. "They had done a routine audit and selected five random credit accounts and had questions about three of them."
"That's a pretty high percentage," Solis-Rainey replied. "Was that reported to management?"
"Yes. The compliance officer is aware of those accounts internally and are moving forward and are getting more information from the gaming control board, as I understand it," Michaels said. "They are still investigating."
Michaels also told commissioners one of those accounts was investigated thoroughly by the board, which said Fontainebleau had followed all of the proper steps.
Before further information about the investigation was revealed, Nevada Gaming Control Board executive director Kirk Hendrick stepped in.
"This is currently under investigation and is therefore confidential by law. I don't want to go any deeper into this matter until the board has the opportunity to review it and speak with the licensee," Hendrick said. "There's no problem with the commission having that material, but you're correct. It should have been marked confidential or under investigation."
Commissioners got the meeting back on track to handle the matter at hand, which was deciding on a license for Wooden. They ultimately decided a two-year condition should be placed on the license, with Wooden set to appear before the board again in 2027.
"Mr. Wooden, nor am I, thrilled about that, but he's more than willing to have his reputation, his acumen and his probity tested," said Dan Reaser, legal counsel for Fontainebleau Las Vegas.
"What I would say is if he hadn't been the president of the Wynn, when all those things were happening in our discipline later today, we wouldn't even be having this conversation," Togliatti said. "I don't think it's fair to refer to this like we're looking at this one little thing in a vacuum. It's the big picture."