The U.S. Department of Justice has instructed former casino mogul Steve Wynn to register as a foreign lobbyist in connection with Wynn’s 2017 efforts to obtain a diplomatic favor for Chinese authorities. The DOJ has brought plenty of muscle to bear, threatening to sue Wynn under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) if he doesn’t comply.
Wynn allegedly tried to convince U.S. officials to deport Chinese businessman Guo Wengui, whom Chinese authorities consider a fugitive. Guo has been accused of a range of criminal offenses, from bribery to sexual assault, all of which he has denied.
Wynn has long denied any wrongdoing. His attorney, Reid Weingarten, told Casino.org, “Steve Wynn never served as an agent or lobbyist for China or anyone else. He was merely a loyal messenger of information he received to our government. Any effort to pursue him in any way for this conduct would be both a miscarriage of justice and an unwarranted extension of the FARA statute.”
Guo, who remains in the U.S., said in a statement, “I am glad to hear the DOJ is investigating Steve Wynn and frankly believe they should criminally indict him for serving as a greedy spy of the Chinese Communist Party.”
Last year, two of Wynn’s associates admitted in plea agreements that in summer of 2017, they discussed Guo’s removal with Wynn and helped facilitate calls between Wynn and a Chinese government official about Beijing’s efforts to remove Guo from the U.S.
