The case against Steve Wynn launched by the US Department of Justice and alleging that Wynn was a foreign agent of China has been dropped by a federal judge in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday. Wynn and his legal team launched a counter-lawsuit contesting that the accusations levied against him were unfounded.
DoJ named Wynn as the defendant of its lawsuit alleging that the casino boss had not registered accordingly as a foreign agent under FARA, a Foreign Agents Registration Act. FARA, though, is a particular piece of legislation and it gives any defendant the benefit of the doubt.
In other words, DoJ, or any other accuser must prove beyond doubt that a person or an entity in the United States had acted against the country’s interest in favor of another state, which is not the case in Wynn’s case. The lawsuit was launched based on allegations that Wynn had tried to influence then-US President Donald Trump in favor of the Chinese government.
Wynn’s legal team has sternly denied wrongdoing and they were vindicated in the nation’s courts this week. The judge, though, explained that he was "not determining" whether Wynn had indeed acted as a foreign agent or was one. Judge James Boasberg simply said that he did not think the facts merited forcing Wynn into registering as a foreign agent.
He added that the communication between Wynn and the Chinese government ended in 2017 and he found any attempt to forcefully register the businessman wrong. With this said, though, Judge Boasberg added that should the Department of Justice chooses to, it can still pursue criminal sanctions against Wynn over alleged undisclosed lobbying.
The Department of Justice may be actually considering pursuing its crusade against Wynn, as a spokesperson was cited by media as saying that the DoJ was not satisfied with the ruling and was now considering its options. Wynn’s legal team though remained adamant in their unflinching defense of their client.
Such claims should have never been filed by DoJ, the team argued, arguing that none of the DoJ’s allegations were based on merit or evidence and were unconfirmed hearsay instead. Wynn, who came under scrutiny and was ousted from Wynn Resorts Ltd. over alleged sexual misconduct towards female employees, has never been convinced of any misdemeanor.
Despite the allegations brought against him, he has been able to settle either outside of court or prove in a court of law that he was innocent in the first place.
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