Wynn Resorts is suing an Australian former casino junket agent and brothel owner for an alleged unpaid debt incurred during a weeklong multimillion-dollar gambling trip to Macau.
Simon Pan, also known as Zhao Yuan Pan, wagered more than HK$17.8 million (US$2.27 million) at Wynn Palace Casino between Dec. 31, 2025 and January 6, 2026, according to a lawsuit first reported Wednesday (Nov. 11) by The Australian Financial Review.
He finished the trip with a net loss of HK$1.4 million (US$178,400) after financing his gambling exploits with a HK$2 million (US$255,000) loan from Wynn that the casino says he refuses to repay.
Wynn Resorts (Macau) S.A. filed its civil claim in the Supreme Court of Victoria on Nov. 4. It is seeking interest on the loan and costs of debt recovery, including legal fees and court expenses. The credit agreement carried an 18% interest rate.
But Pan is not your average casino debtor.
Troubled Junket Past
The Melbourne resident of Chinese origin once served as a junket agent for two of Australia’s largest casino operators, Crown Resorts and Star Entertainment.
His associations with the companies were the scrutinized during a series of high-profile investigations into their suitability to hold casino licenses in 2021 and 2022.
Junket operators bring high-spending gamblers to casinos, typically arranging travel and gambling credit in exchange for commissions.
Pan represented multiple junkets at Crown Melbourne, including Meg-Star, one of Crown’s five largest junket partners.
Connected to Human Trafficking
A Victorian royal commission investigation into Crown found that Australian Federal Police and Victoria Police had warned the operator about Pan’s connections to human trafficking syndicates, illegal brothels and money laundering.
The commission heard that Crown had been notified in 2013 that Pan was a person of interest to the federal police. Victorian police sought information in 2014 in connection with an investigation into possible human trafficking and money laundering.
The royal commission ultimately found Crown had not sufficiently assessed the risks associated with its junket partners.
Crown finally banned Pan in 2019.
Pan also had dealings with Star Entertainment. A regulatory review in 2022 found he had wagered more than A$50 million across the years at Star’s casinos in Sydney, the Gold Coast and Brisbane.
Star terminated its association with Pan in 2019 and banned him from its casinos after raising its risk rating on him to its maximum level.
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