Tony Santo, chief executive officer and director of Canada’s Gateway Casinos & Entertainment died August 17, at age 61. The death was unexpected, Yogonet reported.
Gateway President Tolek Strukoff said in a statement: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Tony Santo. Tony joined Gateway as our President and Chief Executive Officer in October 2013 and became a Director in July 2017. His mission was to establish Gateway as Canada’s premier entertainment and gaming company.”
Santo could be found from “dawn to dusk” visiting the company’s 19 casino sites and 7,000 employees and inquiring about their work, families and lives, said Strukoff.
He added, “Tony was an iconic leader in the U.S. and Canada and grew Gateway from a small regional gaming company to one of the largest gaming companies in Canada. However, Tony would say to himself he didn’t do it – we did it together. Tony was an outstanding leader, colleague, and friend, and he will be greatly missed. On behalf of all of Gateway’s employees, I extend our deepest sympathies to the entire Santo family.”
Santo had previously announced his retirement in 2019 but decided to stay on to help the company after the pandemic arrived in 2020. Gateway operates in Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta.
Before joining Gateway, Santo had been an executive in Las Vegas at several properties including Bally’s Grand, Las Vegas Hilton and Paris. He was also a senior vice president of Caesars Entertainment.
