The adjudicatory hearing for Boston Encore Harbor is held by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission
It has been determined that Boston Encore Harbor (EBH) collected unauthorized wagers on a basketball game that took place on February 2nd, 2023. The error was discovered on February 2, 2023, when EBH informed GAN that it had provided wagering on an unauthorized event.
It was the women's basketball match between Boston College BC and Notre Dame College that was being played. The NCAA women's basketball tournament was not included on the list of games that should not be played, which led to the mistake.
In order to provide event management services for sports betting events, EBH relies on the technology provided by GAN.
When WynnBet notified GAN that a Massachusetts school they were betting on was not authorized, GAN blocked that school's account. The list is designed to prevent any games from being played at schools that are not allowed to participate in the system.
Yet, the blocks were not used against this women's basketball squad in particular.
After discovering the error, EBH froze the ticket and nullified this component of the parlay bet because the game had not yet taken place at the time.
Rob Lekites, the Vice President of GAN, noted that the system included two names for Boston College, which meant that just one of the names was banned. The first was known simply as Boston College, while the second was known as the Boston College Eagles.
He also added that GAN had subsequently incorporated extra names for teams, just in case slightly different names were used for the teams. He said this was done in case the names of the teams were somewhat different. This will serve as a preventative measure in the event that something similar occurs in the future.
In addition, the automatic system has been replaced with a manual one, and now an employee from WynnBet is required to manually authorize wagering for each new event in order for it to take place.
He also added that the firm would normally use code to blacklist names; but, owing to the short turnaround time of finishing the assignment the day before going live, it was done manually. He said this was because the company had to do the task the day before going live.
The Senior Vice President and General Counsel for EBH, Jacqui Krum, expressed remorse that the company allowed gambling on the Boston College basketball game.
This portion of the earnings has now been distributed, and a decision on the next step will be made behind closed doors.
