On Wednesday, the Nevada Gaming Control Board put forth a nomination for Mathew Bowyer, a convicted illegal bookmaker, to be added to the state’s List of Excluded Persons. Commonly known as the “Black Book,” this list permanently prohibits individuals identified as threats to licensed gaming from entering any casinos across the state.
Currently, Bowyer is undergoing a 12-month and one-day sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Lompoc, California. His nomination follows a guilty plea in 2023 for federal offenses including running an illegal gambling operation, money laundering, and submitting a false tax return. His anticipated release date is set for August 16, 2026.
According to Nevada’s regulations, Bowyer has the option to request a hearing to challenge his exclusion and may attend in person, via video, or through legal representation. Board member George Assad indicated that a hearing could potentially occur by March, although most nominees typically decline this opportunity.
The Black Book currently includes 37 individuals. The Nevada Gaming Commission, which has the authority to decide his case, has not yet announced a timeline for Bowyer’s case presentation.
Nona Lawrence, Deputy Attorney General, informed the Board that Bowyer qualifies for exclusion based on multiple criteria, which include felony convictions under federal law, crimes showing moral turpitude, breaches of California gaming regulations, and tax evasion. Furthermore, she highlighted his unsavory reputation as a significant concern for public trust in the gaming industry.
Bowyer attracted considerable notice for taking millions in sports bets from Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter and unofficial manager for Los Angeles Dodgers athlete Shohei Ohtani. Mizuhara received a four-year prison sentence in February for embezzling approximately $17 million from Ohtani to cover gambling debts.
It is reported that Bowyer’s operation involved around 700 bettors and has been connected to several disciplinary actions taken by the state in the previous year. These actions included fines totaling $10.5 million against Resorts World Las Vegas and Genting Berhad, $8.5 million against MGM Resorts International, and $7.8 million against Caesars Entertainment Inc.
Chairman of the Gaming Control Board, Mike Dreitzer, highlighted the importance of this nomination. “Typically, I wouldn’t give attention to this individual in this context,” Dreitzer remarked.
“However, it’s crucial to note that today we’re making a decision that aligns with the core mission of Nevada’s gaming regulations: to safeguard the integrity of gaming, maintain public confidence, and uphold the state’s reputation as a benchmark for gaming oversight.”
He added: “Exclusions are quite rare and reserved for circumstances where the evidence strongly suggests that allowing continued access to licensed gaming facilities would undermine public confidence, facilitate regulatory evasion, or damage the reputation that Nevada has built over decades.”
Assad described Bowyer’s presence in Nevada casinos as highly detrimental. “He has openly disregarded us,” Assad stated. “For seven years, he patronized Caesars and various other casinos without facing consequences; he was aware of his actions.”
Bowyer’s cooperation with federal authorities during his case, along with the settlement of over $1.6 million in restitution, resulted in what many perceived as a lenient sentence. Nonetheless, state regulators asserted that his prior actions warranted his exclusion from Nevada’s gaming institutions.
Bowyer’s nomination follows a comparable recommendation made last December, when the Gaming Control Board proposed including Wayne Nix, a former minor league baseball player who admitted guilt in 2022 to conspiracy to run an illegal gambling operation and to filing a fraudulent tax return. Nix is scheduled for sentencing this March.
The most recent addition to the Black Book occurred in April 2024, when the Nevada Gaming Commission sanctioned the exclusion of Neal Ahmad Hearne, a North Las Vegas man convicted of felony theft related to incidents at two Las Vegas casinos.