Townsville’s Ville Casino pleads not guilty to QLD casino charges

The parent company of The Ville Resort-Casino in Townsville, Breakwater Island Limited, has pled “not guilty” to charges accusing it of violating Queensland casino regulations.

The Office of Liquor and Gambling Regulation (OLGR) previously charged the organization with three separate counts of restriction on different agreements.

The hearing occurred on Friday morning, and solicitor Richard Perry KC represented the resort casino company. Upon appearing in court, the group entered not guilty pleas. The case was eventually adjourned and will be hashed out in court again in March.

A spokesperson of The Ville released a statement on Friday claiming that the gaming venue, located between North Queensland’s Cairns and Brisbane, had adhered to all regulations listed by the OLGR. The rep also said the resort casino had “lawfully” carried out operations and strictly observed its obligations.

“It is the Ville’s position that it operates lawfully and continues to take its obligations seriously,” The Ville spokesperson said.

“On 9 December 2022, The Ville received the OLGR’s brief of evidence.

“We are currently reviewing this evidence with our legal representatives.

The Ville further stated that on the subject of the court summons, it had complied with procedures approved by the OLGR and, on that basis, pled not guilty to the charges leveled at the company.

“The Ville strongly believes that it has followed OLGR-approved procedures in relation to the matters contained in the subject of the summons; therefore, on that basis, it has entered a plea of not guilty to the three charges.”

The Queensland regulator unveiled the charges to the public in December 2022, some months after popular Channel Nine’s program “60 Minutes” released a report concerning an alleged illegal junket operation going on at The Villa Resort-Casino

The report was aired in August 2022 and claimed that The Ville had allegedly used loyalty points and cash as payment to a junkets operator. In return, the operator needed to bring more high rollers to the Townsville casino. The Ville previously claimed that Channel Nine’s report had contained factual inaccuracies.

While junkets are not illegal in the state, Queensland casino laws require that interested parties seek and receive approval for the activity in addition to other agreements or arrangements. This allows the regulator to have a firmer control over the gambling industry and limit the number of criminal acts.

The OLGR was formed to regulate the liquor industry and, in doing so, reduce the amount of harm caused by misuse and abuse of alcohol. The regulator was also tasked with maintaining “the integrity and probity of the gambling industry in Queensland” and ensuring that the state and local communities benefited from legal gaming activities.

The Queensland regulator set up a panel that consists of community leaders, as well as government and industry representatives, to reduce the regulatory burden on the liquor and gaming industries in the state. The panel will handle issues involving liquor licensing, noise restrictions, trading hours, and gaming activities.

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