Here’s the problem. The guy reported income to the IRS from gambling. IRS tax returns are the ultimate evidence of income, used to borrow for real estate loans and lines of credit.
Until someone can produce hard evidence that Paddock made the money some other way, the existing evidence is that he made it as he reported, improbability notwithstanding.
A bank or even the government has to accept that evidence IF that’s all the evidence there is.
“Until someone can produce hard evidence that Paddock made the money some other way, the existing evidence is that he made it as he reported, improbability notwithstanding.”
I don’t think you get it. That’s the point of money laundering. People who start spending millions on real estate, cars, boats, etc. show up on the radar with the IRS. This needs to match roughly what you have been telling the IRS you earn. If you report $50k a year, but spend like you’e making millions, you’ll go down like Al Capone.
So people launder their ill-got gains by pretending they got it elsewhere. Preferably in an all-cash business. Gambling is one easy way.
I think it is possible but improbable that he made fortunes gambling. And I also think that casinos watch their customers so well that they can probably tell if someone is laundering money. And this begs the question of their role in that dirty business.