Billionaire casino mogul Steve Wynn has resigned as head of Wynn Resorts, less than two weeks after the Wall Street Journal published a report about decades of allegations of sexual misconduct.
The Journal article detailed several incidents in which Wynn allegedly pressured staff to perform sex acts. The allegations include those from a manicurist who claims she was forced to have sex with Wynn in 2005, shortly after he opened his flagship Wynn Las Vegas. The paper said she was later paid a $7.5 million settlement.
Wynn has denied the accusations, including again in a statement issued Tuesday announcing he was stepping down.
"In the last couple of weeks, I have found myself the focus of an avalanche of negative publicity. As I have reflected upon the environment this has created -- one in which a rush to judgment takes precedence over everything else, including the facts -- I have reached the conclusion I cannot continue to be effective in my current roles," he said.
Wynn is a towering figure in the gambling world who helped revitalize Las Vegas with resorts such as The Bellagio, The Mirage and Treasure Island.
In addition to being a business mogul, Wynn also served as the finance chairman of the Republican National Committee before resigning from that post last month, and has been a large contributor to the Republican Party.
