Kansas businessman Brandon Steven, who with his brother Rodney led a group of 18 Wichita-area investors in a proposal to build the Castle Rock Casino, announced he is the subject of a federal inquiry regarding his poker playing and involvement in the development. He said several people received letters from the U.S. Attorney’s Office informing them that phone communication with Steven was intercepted under federal law last year.
Steven said, “I’m aware of the broad nature of this inquiry. As you know and everybody knows, I play high-stakes poker. And from what we understand, they are looking into my poker and my involvement with Castle Rock Casino. I’ve retained counsel, and we’re going to fully cooperate with this matter.”
The letter stated, “This notice does not mean that you are being charged in court with anything. This is simply a notice the law requires we send you. It only means that you, or someone using a telephone subscribed to you, were intercepted talking with a person using the telephone listed above.”
Wichita defense attorney Charlie O’Hara explained, “It’s a little more difficult than it would be with a normal search warrant, but they have to have probable cause and the judge has to approve it. What they would do is send a letter after the tap is done and quite frankly, what’s interesting about it, is they send it to everyone who’s had contact with that number.”
Steven’s investor group had proposed to build Kansas’ fourth and final state-owned casino, Castle Rock. The proposed $140 million development was twice as large as the other two in every way, including its 800 employees, $90 million annual earnings and 65,000 square feet. It was to be built in Pittsburg, about 30 miles from the Oklahoma state line.
But the Lottery Review Board voted 5-2 tin favor of Kansas Crossing, instead of Castle Rock. The smallest of the three proposals, Kansas Crossing developers pitched it as a local venue. The Topeka investors already had built casinos in Dodge City and Mulvane.
Wichita billionaire Phil Ruffin also pitched a casino. But unwilling to accept defeat, the Steven brothers joined with Cherokee County in a lawsuit to stop Kansas Crossing, which is under construction. The county said it would lose more than $10 million in annual revenue.
According to the lawsuit, the board was legally bound to select the “contract that best maximizes revenue, encourages tourism and otherwise serves the interests of the people of Kansas.” Castle Rock developers said the review board erred in “selecting the contract which offers lower gross revenue, fewer tourists, lower tax revenue, fewer amenities and fewer jobs.”
Consultants who reviewed the three proposals said the main issue with Castle Rock was that it might not be able to earn enough money to pay back its loans. In addition, board member Gail Radke said she felt Castle Rock was not a good fit because it “was a little bit more contemporary for that rural area.”
Kansas Crossing Casino is nearly completed, but the license to operate it remains in limbo until the state Supreme Court reaches a decision on Castle Rock and the county’s lawsuit.
