The convicted illegal gambler and money launderer who was nominated last month to be placed on Nevada’s blacklist finds it ridiculous that he may never be able to set foot in a casino again.
Mathew Bowyer — currently serving a sentence in a federal prison in Lompoc, California — sees himself as a fall guy for casinos that violated their own anti-money laundering obligations.
Bowyer was nominated Jan. 14 by the Nevada Gaming Control Board to be placed on the list, known as Nevada’s “Black Book,” and his inclusion will be considered in an upcoming meeting of the five-member Nevada Gaming Commission.
Bowyer would become the 38th person to be added to the list, which is considered the worst of the worst criminals that regulators say should be banned forever from Nevada casinos for crimes that hurt the gaming industry and could bring the state into disrepute.
It is unclear when commissioners will act on Bowyer’s proposed introduction.
“My feelings are that I’m the fall guy for everything and everyone in this situation,” Bowyer said in a recent phone interview from jail arranged by the Las Vegas Review-Journal and the Department of Corrections.
FAMILY: Who is in Nevada’s Black Book?
“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous that they’re telling me I can’t set foot in a licensed gaming property in the state of Nevada,” he said. “I mean, I understand they don’t want me to be able to play again, but to tell me I can’t take my 4-year-old boy to Circus Circus or have dinner at Javier’s at Aria is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”
Bowyer said the day before the RJ interview he was visited by two Gaming Control Board agents who notified him of his nomination to the list and explained his options to fight inclusion. But he doubts he will fight it because he said he cannot afford the legal representation needed to make his case before the commission.
Will not fight against inclusion
“Here’s the thing. Number one, I’m in jail. Number two, there’s more lawyers and costs and fees and things that I’m not capable of,” Bowyer said. “So they’ve got me over a barrel. It’s going to be very difficult for me to do anything from here.”
Bowyer, who pleaded guilty in 2024 to federal charges of operating an illegal gambling business, money laundering and filing a false tax return, took sports bets from an estimated 700 players, including Ippei Mizuhara, who was sentenced to four years in prison in February 2025 for stealing an estimated $17 million from the superstar and Shohei. pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
In the wake of Bowyer’s case, three casino companies have been disciplined by the Gaming Commission and fined.
Bowyer’s name has come up in three previous disciplinary actions taken in 2025 involving a $10.5 million fine imposed on Resorts World Las Vegas and its parent company, Genting Berhad, in March, an $8.5 million fine against MGM Resorts International in April and a $7.8 million fine against Caesars Entertainment Inc. in November.
These actions involved the second, fourth and fifth highest fines ever imposed in a gambling disciplinary case.
Nix is also nominated
While the board does not comment on ongoing investigations, there are indications that other casino companies may be disciplined for allowing Bowyer and another Black Book nominee — Newport Coast, Calif. resident Wayne Nix — to gamble at their properties.
Nix, a former minor-league baseball pitcher, was nominated for inclusion in the Black Book in December and, like Bowyer, is awaiting a commission decision.
Nix, who also operated an illegal gambling operation, pleaded guilty in April 2022 in federal court to conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling operation and to filing a false tax return. His sentencing has been delayed several times and is now scheduled for March.
Bowyer was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison by U.S. District Judge John Holcomb on August 29 in Santa Ana, California.
But Bowyer is about to get out of jail. The review board was told by Deputy Attorney General Nona Lawrence at the nomination hearing in January that Bowyer would be released on August 16. In his RJ interview, Bowyer said he will be released on March 9 to a halfway house where he will gradually restore his rights, including being allowed to use computers and cell phones.
Without access to email and phones in prison, Bowyer said he has no idea how well sales of a book he’s written are doing.
Bowyer’s book, “Recalibrate,” was published just before he went to prison. Amazon is promoting it as “a raw, high-stakes memoir about the rise and fall of a man who built an empire on risk—and faced the ultimate test when the government came in. As federal prosecutors closed in, Mathew made the biggest gamble of his life: Could he rebuild not just his business, but his identity?”
When Bowyer gets out of prison, he said he plans to be a motivational speaker — a gig that could face challenges if his audience happens to be in a casino venue that he would be banned from entering if he were placed in the Black Book.
But he also notes that the reputation of being on the list can also create a marketing opportunity.
“I’m a very intelligent individual, not to sound arrogant, but I will use any marketing tool or anything necessary to, you know, promote myself,” Bowyer said. “Even if it’s a negative, I’ll use it as a positive if I have to.”
Another book
He is also writing another book about his experience in prison. When he was released, he said he could promote his writing or go back to a job installing turf.
“I can promote my book and then I’m currently writing another book as well about prison and what’s happened since then,” he said. “But I sold lawns, you know, front and back yards and fields, softball fields, baseball, soccer fields, before I got here because I had to make money to support my family. And I also own a jujitsu studio. So I’m still going to keep those jobs and do whatever I can to put food on the table for the kids until I get my next move.”
Bowyer said he has five children, ages 30, 26, 22, 15 and 4.
Bowyer believes the anti-money laundering crackdown on Nevada casinos will eventually fade over time.
“Their job is to be in compliance,” he said. “I was a customer and obviously they fell for it, and that’s why they got fined. I wish they didn’t let me play. If they would have done their compliance, I would have saved millions of dollars and really wouldn’t be in this situation. I don’t blame them. I’m just saying I shouldn’t be held accountable for them and they shouldn’t be held accountable for them and they shouldn’t be held accountable for them. were out of business, then I wouldn’t even have same argument and they get punished the same as me but fining them for less than half the money made from me is really ridiculous.
Nicole Bowyer
There are still pending cases before the Gaming Commission for Bowyer’s wife, Nicole Bowyer.
More than a year ago, on January 30, 2025, the gaming commission delayed action on a complaint against Nicole Bowyer, who worked as an independent agent for Resorts World Las Vegas.
Nicole Bowyer was banned for at least five years as an agent who encourages a player to play at a specific casino and receives a commission from the casino based on the player’s losses.
Commissioners delayed a decision on a settlement with her because they wanted to see her face harsher penalties. Commissioners separately said they wanted to see Nicole Bowyer fined or possibly have her agent status revoked for life.
Mathew Bowyer claims Resorts World never trained his wife on money laundering compliance, saying casino operators “never had an ounce of AML (anti-money laundering) training”.
“It was something that was meant to be done,” he said. “I found out later because I didn’t know anything about being a casino host and neither did my wife because they were so hungry for our business. They were obviously fine with it. But the fact that they didn’t train. I feel like it’s just completely, you know, unfair would be the best word I could use.”
Since Resorts World was fined, Genting has taken several steps to strengthen AML compliance, including a license application expected to be heard by the Gaming Commission on Thursday.
Former Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval and former Gaming Control Board Chairman AG Burnett have been recommended for licensing as members of the Resorts World Las Vegas Board of Directors.
Sandoval, currently president of the University of Nevada, Reno, and Burnett, a partner in McDonald Carano’s gaming and management law practice, have worked closely with Resorts World Chief Operating Officer Carlos Castro and Chief Compliance Officer Jennifer Roberts to restore the nearly five-year-old resort’s compliance record.
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