Aztec Palace

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A new survey from U.S. News is sounding the alarm over Americans increasingly turning to high-risk endeavors, including sports betting, to help make ends meet and pay their monthly household bills.

U.S. News surveyed 1,200 Americans who placed a sports wager within the last 12 months. The media organization found that more than half of respondents (51%) placed a sports bet to help pay household bills, while 21% wagered specifically to cover their rent or mortgage payment.

Almost six in 10 (57%) of the sports betting demographic said they bet weekly, with 17% betting on a daily basis. Nearly one in five (19%) said they have outstanding sports betting debts.

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The mayor of the Chicago suburb Burr Ridge says he will return a $2,000 donation from a local restaurateur and social media chef accused of moonlighting as an enforcer for an illegal gambling ring.

In response to a query from local news outlet Patch, Republican Mayor Gary Grasso confirmed the existence of the donations from the Capri restaurant and the Are We Live nightclub, two Burr Ridge businesses owned by Filippo “Gigi” Rovito.    

Rovito, whom NBC Chicago previously reported has alleged ties to the Chicago Outfit, is facing federal charges of operating an illegal gambling business and conspiracy to collect extensions of credit by extortionate means.

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“In my experience, where compliance concerns can be satisfactorily addressed without suspending an operator’s licence, the Commission may allow the operator to implement remedial measures or an action plan while continuing to trade,” says Richard Williams, partner at Keystone Law, speaking before the news of the collapse of the businesses.

“The fact that suspension has been considered necessary in this case therefore indicates that the Commission presently considers the issues sufficiently significant to justify preventing the operators from continuing to offer gambling while its reviews are ongoing.”

For any consumer-facing businesses, a suspension is likely existential and such appears to have been the case here. But wider implications have to be considered before the two sites are binned forever.