New Hampshire top court backs revocation of Sanborn casino licence
The state Supreme Court has upheld regulators' decision to strip Andy Sanborn's Concord Casino of its gaming licence amid a COVID-relief fraud case.
New Hampshire's highest court has let stand the stripping of a gaming licence from Andy Sanborn, a former Republican state senator, following a scandal involving misused pandemic relief funds and a collapsed casino sale.
In a ruling issued Wednesday, the court rejected an appeal brought by Sanborn and Win Win Win LLC, the company through which he ran Concord Casino in the state capital.
The justices also upheld a decision by the New Hampshire Lottery and Gaming Commission to reject a prospective buyer for the venue and to decline extending the deadline set for Sanborn to complete a sale.
Sanborn had been ordered to sell Concord Casino after state investigators found he had improperly obtained $844,000 in federal pandemic relief loans, according to Casino.org. Investigators alleged some of the proceeds were spent on two Porsches and a Ferrari.
The casino shut down in January 2024, and regulators pulled its gaming licence once Sanborn could not get a regulator-approved buyer over the line.
Why the sale collapsed
Sanborn had struck an agreement that could have brought in $40 million from a buyer whose identity was not disclosed, built around an initial $10 million payment followed by $30 million over five years.
That second tranche was contingent on the buyer obtaining authorisation to operate historic horse racing machines, Casino.org reported.
Regulators rejected the arrangement over doubts about the buyer's ability to finance the purchase and concerns that the structure would let Sanborn retain significant influence over the casino.
Sanborn contended that regulators had unreasonably blocked the sale and, in doing so, destroyed the value of his business. The Supreme Court instead found the commission's decisions were supported by the evidence before it.
The federal case
Sanborn entered a guilty plea in federal court in July, admitting he had taken $255,232 in pandemic relief funds and spent money earmarked for his business on himself.
That plea followed a multi-year investigation into his handling of Economic Injury Disaster Loan funds, a Small Business Administration programme.
State investigators have previously alleged that Sanborn concealed the casino's identity on loan applications, since gambling businesses were not eligible for the assistance, and that relief funds went toward the two Porsches and the Ferrari bought for his wife, Laurie Sanborn, a former state representative.
Sanborn also faces separate state fraud charges alleging he inflated the casino's revenues by more than $1 million to secure additional pandemic assistance.
Under his federal plea agreement, prosecutors have agreed to recommend a sentence of one year and one day in prison, though sentencing ultimately rests with the court.
With the Supreme Court's ruling in place, the future of Concord Casino remains unresolved.