Under pressure casino mogul Steve Wynn has finally stepped down as Wynn Resorts CEO as damaging sexual misconduct claims continue to swirl around him.
Wynn cites the ‘negative publicity’ making his continued participation as the head of the company untenable.
It is also thought the scandal has come at a high financial cost to Wynn, with his personal fortune lighter by more than $400 million.
Wynn’s stock price initially plunged and Nevada’s influential Gaming Control Board was the latest to start an investigation.
Wynn is alleged to have engaged in sexual misconduct with company employees over several decades and in one case resulted in a secret $7.5 million settlement, the Wall Street Journal reported.
This week Sin City’s leading newspaper the Las Vegas Review-Journal admitted it had suppressed a news report about sexual misconduct against employees dating back 20 years.
"In the last couple of weeks, I have found myself the focus of an avalanche of negative publicity," Wynn said.
"As I have reflected upon the environment this has created — one in which a rush to judgment takes precedence over everything else, including the facts — I have reached the conclusion I cannot continue to be effective in my current roles," a statement from Steve Wynn said.
Wynn resigned last month as the Republican National Committee finance chairman when allegations of sexual assault first came to light.
He is still being backed by the company – at least publicly.
"Steve Wynn created modern Las Vegas. He transformed the city into an economic powerhouse by making it a world-wide tourist destination. He designed, built and operated the most iconic resorts on the Las Vegas strip," the Wynn board said in a statement.
The Wynn Resorts board of directors announced company president Matt Maddox as new CEO with immediate effect.
