In the case of the Joker’s “Serial-players”, the Loterie Romande sent a warning letter to the Geneva tobacconists involved. She criticizes them for having accepted massive bets deemed disproportionate. It also tells the RTS that such a situation cannot happen again.
The betting case that won the JOKER game jackpot by betting nearly 2 million francs in Geneva rebounds. Several tobacconists, who have cashed these colossal sums, are now in the viewfinder of the Roman lottery. A warning letter, revealed by the Genève Tribune, was sent to them, evoking a possible termination of their contract.
The grievances are clear: the game company criticizes them for accepting bets deemed “disproportionate”, sometimes of several tens of thousands of francs in a single point of sale. More broadly, she denounces a breach of “duties of loyalty and diligence” and a loss of confidence. The letter also evokes irregularities in the recording of bets and asks merchants not to disclose its content.
Boralists taken between anger and insecurity
Questioned by RTS, several managers of Geneva kiosks oscillate between fear and anger. On the one hand, they fear for their activity: the Games of the Loterie Romande represent a significant part of their income. On the other, they believe they are not at fault in this case. They evoke a lack of clear guidelines concerning the limits of bet for the Joker game and recall that some had even alerted the lottery in the face of the unusual magnitude of the sums committed.
Unlike other games subject to ceilings, the Joker did not seem to have a limit of putting in fact, they say. From their point of view, the responsibility for the situation is based on a lack of regulation, “a flaw in the system”, rather than on a fault on their part.
-Ignored prescriptions, according to the Roman lottery
Interviewed Thursday in the Forum program, the director general of the Loterie Romande, Jean-Luc Moner-Banet, firmly challenges the idea of a flaw in the system. “This game presents a million different combinations with two francs the combination. The calculation is quickly made. It is 2 million issues. If we manage to return these 2 million in the allotted time, we are sure to win. But we must do it according to the conditions provided for in the regulations,” he explains.
For the Loterie Romande, it is therefore not the principle of the strategy of the players who poses a problem, but rather the framework in which it was carried out. “We don’t play anything, at any time, with any tool, with any person,” insists Jean-Luc Moner-Banet.
>> The integral interview with Jean-Luc Moner-Banet in the Forum program:
And if the points of sale maintain for the moment their status of partners, a reminder of order was, according to him, necessary: ”We simply tell them: beware, certain prescriptions must be respected.” He also indicates that arrangements have already been made so that such a serial-players operation can no longer reproduce.
The investigation is still undergoing its course, in particular to ensure compliance with legislation on the fight against money laundering. The player who has implemented this strategy is identified, and checks are underway on the origin of the funds used. The 3 million franc jackpot has not yet been paid, but Jean-Luc Moner-Banet assures that the gain will be paid, if all checks do not reveal a problem.
Charlotte Frossard/ther
