Riverside Casino fined $20K for minor gambling

A minor was caught gambling at Riverside Casino & Golf Resort in September, and the casino now has to pay the price.

On Thursday, the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission fined the Riverside Casino $20,000 for the violation.

'On Sept. 19, a minor entered the (gaming) floor unchallenged,” Gaming Commission Administrator Brian Ohorilko said. 'The individual gambled at the facility and was on the floor for over two hours.”

A person must be at least 21 years old to gamble in Iowa.

Ohorilko added that the minor was caught after they left the gaming floor and tried to re-enter.

'Those factors trigger a commission referral,” he said. '(Riverside Casino) acknowledged and accepted a penalty of $20,000.”

He explained that the casino self-reported the violation and conducted an independent investigation of the incident.

'That is the responsibility of the facility,” Ohorilko said. 'It is the expectation that a facility will self-report a violation like this.”

He added that if a facility does not self-report, the potential fine could be much larger.

Ohorilko said that the $20,000 fine is the usual penalty for the first or second offense during a 365-day period.

'It will escalate after that,” he said. 'There's a lot of precedent.”