Publication Date: March 17, 2026, 10:01 AM.
Updated on: March 17, 2026, 10:01 AM.
- Federal judge rules that allegations of drink tampering can advance to trial
- Dwight Manley claims he suffered a $2 million loss due to ketamine exposure
- MGM denies any misconduct, argues the lawsuit seeks to evade gambling liabilities
A federal judge has ruled that a case concerning the alleged drugging of Dennis Rodman’s former representative at the MGM Grand will proceed to court.
As reported by the Nevada Current, Judge Miranda Du has rejected MGM’s request for a summary judgment in response to Dwight Manley’s complaint, in which he alleges he was subjected to ketamine during a visit to the casino in December 2021.
Manley, a sports agent and property investor known for managing Rodman in the 1990s, claims that after feeling disoriented from the alleged drugging, MGM’s VIP staff increased his credit limit to $3.5 million.
“The evidence presented by the plaintiff has established a genuine issue regarding the cocktail served by the defendant’s staff, which allegedly incapacitated him when he entered the disputed credit agreement,” Du noted in her ruling.
Experiencing the ‘K-hole’
As a long-standing high-roller at MGM Resorts, Manley had been invited to the MGM Mansion, an exclusive hotel filled with masterpieces by renowned artists. The VIP team arranged a private jet for him and his associates.
On December 10 at approximately 1:45 PM, Manley ordered an Old Fashioned that he described as “bitter” but consumed it anyway, later requesting a second drink. Shortly after, he reported feelings of confusion, as stated in his lawsuit.
After breaking a glass ashtray and injuring his hand, which bled onto the gaming table, staff promptly relocated him to another table but offered minimal medical care beyond Band-Aids, according to the lawsuit.
Despite his condition, they raised his credit line, which Manley asserts he was unable to authorize. He claims he lost $2 million in casino markers while playing blackjack.
By around 5:15 PM, his friends took him back to his villa where he lost consciousness. The following day, he believed he had been drugged. A medical professional later determined “with reasonable medical certainty” that Dwight Manley was poisoned with ketamine early on December 10, 2021, at the MGM Grand Mansion.
$1 Million Bounty
Manley later launched a billboard campaign across Las Vegas offering a $1 million reward for information on who drugged him and why.
During the discovery phase, Manley’s attorney, Paul Hejmanowski, alleged he identified 11 individuals who claimed to have been intoxicated on the property.
MGM has countered that there’s no substantiated evidence of wrongdoing by the company or its employees, suggesting that the lawsuit is a strategy to evade gambling debts.