In the latest of a continued affront on sweepstakes casinos, Connecticut state regulators are pressing criminal charges against High 5 Casino for continuing to offer its games to CT customers after allegedly exiting the state. Additionally, Connecticut’s Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) Gaming Division confirmed it is suspending parent company High 5 Games’ online service provider license to offer slot game content to regulated operators.
High 5 Games released a statement in response, affirming the company’s commitment to gaming compliance.
“High 5 Games has always upheld the highest regulatory standards and remains committed to compliance across all jurisdictions in which we operate. Throughout our 30-year history as an established gaming brand in the U.S., we have worked closely with regulators to ensure responsible and transparent business practices, offering an experience to our loyal business partners that is both enjoyable and safe.”
Meanwhile, their neighbors in New York just advanced a proposed sweeps ban bill out of committee.
Connecticut’s hard-nosed stance against sweeps
Connecticut is among a handful of states to take a firm stance and some swift actions in an attempt to exclude sweepstakes casino sites from operating within their state borders. In Oct. 2024, the DCP sent a cease-and-desist letter to the biggest sweeps gaming operator, Virtual Gaming Worlds (VGW), for offering unlicensed gambling that violated state law. While admitting no wrongdoing, VGW complied and exited the state.
High 5 already had Michigan on its list of prohibited states, but on Feb. 18 it pulled out of the other six regulated iGaming states – Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Delaware, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.
Last month, the Connecticut General Law Committee filed SB1235, a bill that would outlaw and criminalize sweepstakes gaming operators (and prohibit lottery courier services).
Details of High 5 Casino’s alleged offenses and penalties in CT
In their March 14 press release, the Connecticut DCP confirmed that the only two legal online casino options in the state are FanDuel and DraftKings, partnered with Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods, respectively. The release also declared that High 5 Casino was marketed as a ‘licensed’ casino to customers in CT. According to the release:
“The DCP Gaming Division investigation determined that 1,100 Connecticut customers made deposits and gambled on the unlicensed High5Casino platform. Of those, 911 customers lost a total of $937,938, and 108 were individuals who had signed up for the Voluntary Self-Exclusion List. Customers on the Voluntary Self-Exclusion List lost nearly $300,000 on the platform.”
As a result, High 5 Games faces 1,065 criminal counts of conducting illegal gaming activity, a Class A misdemeanor that comes with a penalty of up to one year in jail and a fine up to $2,000 for each offense.
“DCP will seek restitution for eligible consumers who suffered a financial loss after being misled to believe that High5Casino was a legal form of gaming in Connecticut,” the release reads.
“High5Games took advantage of their credential to mislead consumers into believing they were participating in gaming on a legal platform when, in fact, they were breaking the law,” said DCP Commissioner Bryan T. Cafferelli.
As a result, High 5’s gaming supplier license was suspended “effective immediately,” with any games supplied to FanDuel or DraftKings to be removed with haste.
New York passes sweeps ban bill out of committee
The heat is certainly cranking up on sweepstakes gaming operators, not just in Connecticut. Next door in New York, the Senate Racing, Gaming and Wagering committee just advanced a bill to ban sweepstakes operators in the state at their March 18 meeting.
Senator Joseph Addabbo is the sponsor of S5935, which would outlaw the operation or facilitation of casino-style games using the sweepstakes gaming model. During the meeting, the proposal received two “aye” votes and one “aye without recommendation” vote to advance out of committee. Senator Addabbo also made reference to Connecticut’s recent anti-sweeps actions during the session.
“Right now we have a number of states, Connecticut being one of them, that basically made it illegal. They kicked out one of their operators,” said Addabbo.
High 5 looks to restore iGaming service provider license in Connecticut
High 5 Gaming stated in their response to the DCP an intention to work with CT regulators to get the issue resolved.
“We pride ourselves on the games we deliver as a B2B supplier to operators in all regulated markets in the United States, Canada, and Latin America. Honor, trust, and legal compliance will always be cornerstones of our business. We treasure our relationships with all iGaming operators as clients, and we safeguard these relationships with extreme care. We will always continue to work hard to bring the highest value of content to our partners in a reliable, safe way.
“We are committed to cooperating with Connecticut regulators to resolve this matter and maintain the integrity of our gaming licenses. Our focus remains on delivering exceptional and innovative gaming experiences while fully complying with all state and country regulations.”
Whether or when High 5 Games will regain its games provider license in Connecticut remains to be seen.
