Action 24/7 files lawsuit against Tennessee Lottery officials after license suspension

Operator had sports betting license suspended but is now suing state officials in bid to overturn punishment.

Tennessee local sportsbook Action 24/7 has filed a lawsuit against Tennessee Lottery officials following the suspension of its sports betting license.

As Gaming America previously reported, the operator had its license suspended Friday after an employee self-reported alleged cases of credit card fraud, proxy betting and money laundering.

The Tennessee Education Lottery’s Sports Advisory Council held an emergency meeting Friday afternoon, where Lottery inspector Danny DiRienzo shared that he received an email of reported fraud and money laundering on the sportsbook’s mobile app.

According to The Tennessean, DiRienzo said tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars were funneled through the app, with dozens of accounts linked to proxy betting.

However, CEO Tina Hodges was defiant in a statement, saying: “The Board today indefinitely suspended Action 24/7’s sports betting operator license for suspicious player deposit activity. This suspicious activity was detected quickly by Action staff and Action swiftly suspended the involved player accounts. Action instituted additional controls to curb the activity, and no further such activity has occurred since.

“Yet the Board relied upon unfounded fears of future speculative recurrences of the activity, and took draconian action just as the NCAA Tournament is beginning. Obviously, we are disappointed in the Board’s decision, but will continue to work with TEL staff and seek all other avenues of relief to have the suspension lifted quickly so that the people of Tennessee may continue to enjoy wagering on the Action 24/7 sportsbook.”

Now, in filing its lawsuit, the company has lamented “an inadequate or sometimes complete lack of review of the evidence, an unwillingness to hear Action’s side of the story, and a rush to judgment, ultimately resulting in a destruction of Action’s business,” as quoted by the Associated Press.

Tim Poole

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