Gauselmann Group owners, who have invested millions in hotel Millennium casino through their brand Mercur, are thinking of seizing the European prosecutor office for a deceit in a quite significant amount
An international gambling affair with ominous revelations about tax, financial and software fraud, compared to which Vasil Bozhkov's deeds look like school exercises, is about to erupt in the heart of Sofia, especially at the luxury Millennium Hotel. Several private investigation teams of the largest German casino operator Mercur GMBH, part of the megaholding based in Berlin Gauselmann Group, have been sent there in complete secrecy since the beginning of the year. The international company is recognized as the "Rolls Royce of the gambling" and is the absolute leader in all segments of the industry - from the production of slots, roulettes and all kinds of casino solutions, through physical gaming halls based in the world's most elite hotels online betting that have gained popularity during the Covid – 19 pandemic. A couple of years ago, the Germans entered into a partnership with the mastitis and mysterious local gambling boss Milo Borisov, creating the joint venture Palms Mercur Casino. Dozens of gambling halls have been opened all over the country under the brand, but the pearl in the crown is the casino of the Millennium Hotel, which with its scale and appetizing location was supposed to attract hundreds of players daily all of them from the cream of the gambling community around the world. It is the kitsch gambling establishment that is the reason for one of the largest international private investigations, commissioned by the Gauselmann Group on suspicion that their Bulgarian partner is deceiving them.
At first, they got suspicious because of the low incomes, stating the fact that the casino was full of people every night and large groups of wealthy Israelis were staying at the hotel, specifically to comb their gambling scabies. Each of the VIP clients played a minimum of 15,000 euros per night, with the most addicted parting with the colossal 200,000 euros per visit. Among the interrogations and denunciations by the Bulgarian staff, it became clear that Milo Borisov kept double-entry bookkeeping with a black box at his company which headquarters are based on Kukush Street in the capital of Sofia. Millions of leva were poured in there every day, and the Germans were left with bundles in the official coffers, explaining that the crisis had pressed the players and they were betting only small sums.
And that is just the icing of the iceberg. Interrogations with croupiers and waiters have revealed the horrific misery in which Milo Borisov and his sister keep their employees. The alleged gambling bosses use to collect their tips and give them a salary of between BGN 1,400 and 1,800 a month. On top of that, most are insured on the minimum wage or are on a freelance contract. Many of the attendants are enrolled "on probation" and "for a trial period" to save taxes. The pinnacle of cynicism is that often boys and girls who do not bend their legs all day are deprived of the obligatory water and snacks on the pretext that they are wasting time and incurring unnecessary expenses. Each employee has signed that he receives a uniform worth the cosmic BGN 700, which is more or less the cost of the teams of the French Olympians, sewn by the Chanel fashion house. In fact, the shirts, vests and trousers are sewn in an old manufactory near Aytos at BGN 48 per unit, the German auditors found. The low-quality fabrics do not withstand daily wear, laundry and sweat, and regularly split at the seams. In this case, the employees are sent to a special seamstress, and the cost of repairs are deducted from the meager salaries. This explains the constant turnover of staff, because no one is willing to stay for more than a month or two.
The peak of Milo Borissov impudence is the notorious casino repair for which Germans have paid 23 million euros. The real price is actually not more than tree millions.
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