The Star’s Geoff Hogg resigns as acting chief executive
The Star Entertainment Group’s acting chief executive Geoff Hogg has stepped down two weeks after the embattled casino group was found unfit to hold its NSW casino license.
Hogg’s departure also comes on the eve of the casino group pleading its case to the NSW Independent Casino Commission on Tuesday, after a lengthy inquiry headed by Adam Bell SC found evidence of an extensive compliance breakdown that led to money laundering, criminal infiltration, large-scale fraud and foreign interference.
The Star has been given until Tuesday to prove why its license should not be permanently revoked, ahead of the commission’s penalty decision.
Hogg was appointed acting chief executive following the resignation of John O’Neill, who departed during the inquiry in May. His final departure date has not yet been determined, but he will work with the group’s board to transition his executive responsibilities without additional remuneration.
Interim chairman Ben Heap will assume the role of executive chairman until the incoming managing director and chief executive officer Robbie Cooke commences. Cooke finishes up at ASX-listed fintech Tyro in December and his appointment at The Star is still subject to regulatory approval. The Star’s previous chief executive Matt Bekier stood down in March.
Commission head Phillip Crawford has savaged the culture at The Star and its management of being “breathtakingly arrogant.”
Crawford criticised Hogg over his comments at the Gotterson casino inquiry in Queensland about allowing a person linked to organised crime to frequent its Gold Coast casino.
“When he was questioned about that, he [Hogg] virtually said, ‘Well, unless there’s evidence beyond reasonable doubt to the criminal standard that will stop him from gambling in Queensland, we thought it was OK.’ And that person [Hogg] with that attitude is the acting CEO of the group.”
“They thought it was fine for him to keep gambling up in Queensland for another 15 years, and it’s just ridiculous,” Crawford said.
The public inquiry was launched after a 2021 investigation by the Herald, The Age and 60 Minutes alleged The Star enabled money laundering, organised crime, large-scale fraud and foreign interference in its Australian casinos for years, even though the board was warned its anti-money-laundering controls were failing.
Bell did not make any recommendations regarding which changes The Star needs to make to hold a casino licence, as that was not in the terms of reference. The NSW Independent Casino Commission will wait until after receiving Star’s show cause submission before deciding its next course of action.
Counsel assisting the inquiry Naomi Sharp, SC, closed her submissions in June arguing that Star Entertainment Group and its close associates were not suitable to hold a casino licence and had yet to decisively rectify its dysfunctional internal culture and risk management failures.
Most Viewed in Business
Source: Thanks smh.com