Pinnock also recounted a meeting with then-solicitor general Kash Heed, where he aired his concerns about the problem and Coleman\u2019s alleged lack of interest.<\/p>\n
I told him I am convinced that Rich Coleman knows what\u2019s going on inside those casinos,\u201d Pinnock recalled. \u201cAnd Kash Heed confirmed my perception that I was accurate in my belief, and he did feel that Rich Coleman had created this.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\u201cHe said to me, in effect, \u2018That is what is going on, Fred. But I can\u2019t say that publicly. You know, it\u2019s all about the money.’\u201d<\/p>\n
BC Lottery Corp Casinos generated CA$1.814 billion in the 2015\/16 fiscal year.<\/p>\n
Enforcement Vacuum<\/strong><\/h2>\nPinnock\u2019s battles with his superiors in the BC Mounties, as well as the Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch, eventually led to him taking medical leave in 2007. A year later, his unit was disbanded, three months after it compiled a damning report on BC\u2019s casino\u2019s infiltration by organized crime.<\/p>\n
This left an enforcement vacuum in the province until 2016, when BC launched an anti-gang unit which took up the role of targeting money laundering and casino crime.<\/p>\n
Following the dissolution of his unit, Pinnock asked his then-girlfriend, BC lawmaker Naomi Yamamoto, to approach Coleman with his concerns. But she was publicly berated when she tried to bring the issue up.<\/p>\n
Coleman\u2019s reaction was \u201cbrutal and dismissive and embarrassing,\u201d the commission heard.<\/p>\n
Pinnock is expected to continue his testimony on Friday.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
British Columbia\u2019s minister in charge of gaming under the province\u2019s former Liberal government had no interest in combating money laundering at state-owned casinos, according to a former top police officer. Fred Pinnock was commander of BC\u2019s anti-illegal gaming unit until it was disbanded by the Liberals in 2009. He told a commission examining historical casino […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":154582,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Top BC Lawmaker Let Money Launderers Run Riot in State Casinos<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n