The FBT's move comes just a month after FBT filed a civil suit against the Massachusetts Game Commission for "interference" in a land sale deal with Wynn Resorts.
Not long ago, casino mogul Steve Wynne announced plans to buy a site from FBT and build a casino in Everett. The deal between the two parties has been embroiled in controversy over allegations that convicted felon Charles Lightbody is still involved in the ownership of FBT.
Under the Massachusetts legal framework, convicted felons are prohibited from benefiting from casino operations. Therefore, Mr. Wynn was unable to execute his casino plan because Lightbody would be the beneficiary of the money transaction. The Massachusetts Game Commission warned Mr. Wynn about the possibility of ownership of Lightbody. This will cause certain legal problems.
The casino tycoon, who was aware of the information, decided to drastically lower the bid price for the designated site from $75 million initially to $35 million. This is almost three times lower than the initial agreed price for the contaminated site in FBT. It is interesting to mention here that the FBT purchased that particular land for $8 million in 2009. Nevertheless, FBT agreed to sell the land to Mr. Wynn at a lower price.
FBT waged war to protect its interests
But the property company decided to protect its reputation and interests, and FBT filed a civil suit against the commission on Nov. 15 in Suffolk Superior Court, alleging its interference was unjust and hurt the company's dealings with Mr Wynn, and the game board's legal representatives said FBT's claims were invalid because they were not backed by facts.
In 2016, the trial of Lightbody and two other alleged accomplices Dustin DeNunzio and Anthony Gattineri went to court. According to the allegations, the three respondents conspired to hide Lightbody's criminal past and transfer Lightbody's FBT ownership. Eventually, the three men were found not guilty, and the real estate company claims the right to claim more than $40 million in monetary compensation for the Wynn casino transaction.