Marnell Gaming this month bought the Sparks Nugget Casino Resort in Northern Nevada for an undisclosed price from a private investment group, Wolfhound Holdings, which bought the property in 2013.
Marnell Gaming owns the Colorado Belle and Edgewater casino resorts in Laughlin, and built the M Resort in Henderson, which Penn National Gaming took over in 2011.
Marnell Gaming owner Anthony Marnell III says buying the Sparks Nugget gives the company an entry into the Reno-Tahoe gaming market, while aligning with an established gaming brand.
“We are entering the Reno-Sparks market during an exciting period of economic expansion,” Marnell said in a statement. “We see this as a remarkable opportunity to join forces with an iconic Nevada brand.”
John Ascuaga, a prominent early Nevada casino developer, built the Sparks Nugget in 1955, and his family sold it to an investment group in 2013. Global Gaming & Hospitality has operated since.
The Sparks Nugget has a 29-story, 1,382-room hotel, 75,000-square-foot casino, 110,000-square-foot convention center, and eight restaurants.
Marnell said he plans to undertake large capital improvements to the property, including remodeling the casino, adding new slot machines, renovating 800 hotel rooms, and other changes.
First, Nevada gaming regulators must approve the deal.
And that may be an issue since it was also revealed last week that the federal government’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has been investigating the original owners of the property, the Ascuaga family, since 2013. The investigation surrounds questionable financial practices and possibly anti-money laundering violations.
Michonne Ascuaga, daughter of John Ascuaga, was the CEO of The Nugget for 16 years. She is now a member of the Nevada Gaming Commission, but claims she was never a target of the investigation.
“The Sparks Nugget was informed in November 2013 by the Department of Treasury that the department was investigating whether it was appropriate to impose civil penalties for possible violations of anti-money laundering regulations,” she said in the statement. “The matter arose from an audit-type examination conducted by the IRS at the casino in 2010. This was all disclosed immediately to the buyer.”
Nonetheless, Ascuaga resigned her position with the Nevada Gaming Commission after the investigation was revealed. In a letter to Brian Sandoval, Ascuaga said she was stepping down to avoid having her family’s “on-going business litigation” distract from the regulatory functions of the commission.
“I always tried to conduct myself with the highest standards of professionalism consistent with the tradition members of this body have followed past and present,” she said in the letter.
“I appreciate that she has put the credibility and reputation of the Gaming Commission first. Michonne is a consummate professional and will continue to be a leader in our community,” said Sandoval, who appointed Ascuaga to the commission last April.
In the meantime, there has also been a dispute between Wolfhound Holdings and the Ascuagas, who filed suit in January 2015 alleging that they hadn’t been fully compensated for the sale. The case is still pending.
