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Hotelier Steve Wynn accused of sexual misconduct with numerous employees
The Wynn Resorts CEO allegedly used position of power to request sexual favors
UPDATED: January 27, 2018.
More than 100 women have come forward to allege decades of sexual misconduct by casino mogul Steve Wynn, who is CEO of Wynn Resorts Ltd.
The Wall Street Journal interviewed around 150 women who worked for the 75-year-old casino magnate and hotelier. Some told the Journal that Wynn was known to make advances on female employees and request sexual favors. They said they felt pressured to follow through given the power their employer wielded over them.
The investigation started from a lawsuit by Wynn’s ex-wife, Elaine Wynn, which sought to lift restrictions on her Wynn Resort stock. That suit revealed Wynn paid a female manicurist $7.5 million in 2005 after allegedly forcing her to have sex with him.
Employees at the Wynn Las Vegas’ on-site salon — which Wynn frequented — told the Journal they sometimes created fake appointments and had others pose as assistants so female workers wouldn’t have to be in Wynn’s office alone with him. Some female employees reportedly hid in the bathrooms or back rooms when they heard Wynn was on his way.
By early Friday afternoon, Bloomberg reported that shares of Wynn Resorts Ltd. fell 8 percent on the news.
On Saturday, BuzzFeed reported Wynn had resigned from his position as finance chair for the Republican National Committee.
Wynn called the allegations “preposterous” and claimed the Journal’s investigation was instigated by his ex-wife, amid their “terrible and nasty lawsuit” over her Wynn Resort shares.
Wynn built and later sold the Mirage, Treasure Island, and Bellagio resorts in Las Vegas. He owns four Wynn and Encore-branded casinos between Las Vegas and Macau, China, and is building a Wynn resort outside Boston. [WSJ] — Dennis Lynch