New RICO Suit Against Wynn Resorts Owner Steve Wynn Dropped in Court

Casino tycoon and Wynn Resorts owner Steve Wynn had a lawsuit accusing him of racketeering and disrupting the judicial process dismissed in court. 

The lawsuit was levied by Angelica Limcaco, an ex-salon manager at Wynn Las Vegas. She previously sued him in 2018 for alleged sexual harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination.

The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals ultimately rejected the woman’s case. Her attorney, Jordan Matthews of Weinberg Gonser Frost LLP, already said that they plan to appeal the case to the US Supreme Court.

Wynn and several others were named in Limcaco’s lawsuit, commonly known as a “RICO” (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act).

According to the woman, she was the first to expose the billionaire’s supposed sexual misconduct in 2005. She also says that she was forced to keep quiet until she was eventually fired and held out from the casino industry.

The plaintiff also said that Wynn raped and impregnated another salon employee. Wynn rejects these claims, but court documents show that he paid the woman $7.5 million in an out-of-court settlement.

Limcaco’s initial filing was rejected by the court in 2020. Wynn’s attorney in that case, Elayna Youchah, was appointed as a magistrate judge in the middle of the proceedings, giving her influence on the presiding judge.

Wynn Resorts also donated to the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada (LACSN) around the time the case was going on. Notably, LACSN executive director Barbara Buckley was part of the team that appointed Youchach to the magistrate judge, which raised more suspicion.

The RICO suit was then filed later in 2020 and accused several people of conspiring to illegally protect Wynn and Wynn Resorts from any punitive measures. Once again, Limcaco and her team were dismissed from the court in November 2021 after they were told the case was “highly speculative.”

The latest decision from the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals is in concurrence with the 2021 decision. 

“Limcaco’s complicated theory of causation turns on a ‘cascading chain of events’ spanning multiple years and involving several third parties,” wrote the court. “Limcaco does not adequately allege that, but for the Appellees’ unlawful conduct in elevating Youchah, her injury would not have occurred, because the district court dismissed her claim as time-barred, and we affirmed that dismissal on appeal.”

The plaintiff is being spurred on by several key factors. One of the biggest is that at the time the RICO suit was filed, Steve Wynn was being investigated by Massachusetts regulators for sexual misconduct, and Wynn Resorts’ casino licenses were therefore at risk.

Limcaco’s attorney said that they will continue pursuing a conviction for Wynn and are undeterred by the repeated failures in court.

“Similar to the Department of Justice, which recently brought claims against Steve Wynn and Tom Barrack, and which recently filed an appeal in the matter against Steve Wynn for his alleged violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act, we will continue to vigilantly protect our client’s rights and will continue to bring tough cases,” said Matthews. “We look forward to addressing this matter with the United States Supreme Court.”

This is an important time for Wynn and other casino companies as many states continue to pursue legal sports betting and ramp up their sports betting offerings.

Massachusetts is one of those states on the verge of launching its sports betting market. While WynnBet was already approved in Massachusetts, Caesars and BetMGM also recently joined the fray.