Two of the four senior executives that were fired by The
Venetian Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas for their involvement in rigging promotional
contests in 2002 now run a New Mexico casino owned by the Mescalero Apache
Indian tribe.
Michael French, former senior vice president at The
Venetian, is now chief operating officer for the Inn of the Mountain Gods casino
in Mescalero, N.M. Brian Parrish, The Venetian’s former vice president
of marketing, is now the Mescalero casino’s director of marketing.
Tribal officials said they reviewed French’s and Parrish’s
participation in The Venetian’s rigged contests but found that their
involvement wasn’t enough to disqualify them for their New Mexico jobs.
The Venetian was fined $1 million by the Nevada Gaming
Control Board following an investigation into the rigging with one third of the
fine being applied to investigative expenses.
Boyd Gaming Corporation (BYD) has announced the appointment
of Tony Taeubel as vice president and general manager of the Stardust
Resort and Casino.
Taeubel has been involved in the gaming industry for the past
two decades, beginning his career as a ticket writer in the race and sports book
at the Reno Turf Club. He spent six years as an agent at the Nevada Gaming
Control Board before furthering his career as a casino executive at the
Peppermill in Reno, the Ameristar Casino in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and the Pearl
River Resort in Choctaw, Miss.
Gordon Dickie is the new director of compliance for
Shuffle Master Inc. (SHFL). He most recently was executive director of the
Cabazon Tribal Gaming Commission.
A former police officer in San Diego, Cal., Dickie spent
several years an enforcement officer for the Nevada Gaming Control Board before
moving into an executive position at the Isleta Casino and the Chinook Winds
Casino, both operated by Indian tribes. He also held posts with Harrah’s and
Hilton Hotel’s gaming operations.
Well-known gaming executive Pat Cruzen, who spent
several years in executive capacities with Caesars Palace and the MGM Grand
Hotel Resort, has joined the board of directors of Cash Systems Inc. of
Minneapolis, Minn. Also joining the board is Gordon Graves, former
chairman and CEO of Multimedia Games Inc. (MGAM).
And the Hard Rock Café International, a subsidiary of
U.K.-based The Rank Group, has named Hamish Dodds as its new CEO. Dodds
is a former executive with PepsiCo Beverages ÂÂÂInternational.