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Postmedia asked River Rock’s operator, Great Canadian Gaming, to comment on Gao’s case and employment status, but executives were not made available.

“As a matter of policy and confidentiality, we do not comment on individual employee matters,” Terrance Doyle, chief operating officer of Great Canadian Gaming, said Monday in a statement. “What I can say is that we would never condone or allow any conduct that is inconsistent with our company policies or with the rules put in place by our regulators.”

Photo by Gerry Kahrmann / PNG Files

Gao’s professional profile says she has worked at River Rock since 2010, and before that she worked in Shenzhen, a city in China’s Guangdong province.

Her profile says “under the direction of the executive director” as director for VIP guest relations she worked “closely with all key department heads.” Gao also provided “strategic directions and oversight of guest acquisition, development and retention … (and oversaw) daily operations of all high-limit areas on property.”

In addition to directing other VIP hosts, Gao was responsible for overseeing table play in River Rock’s exclusive “VIP Prive Program.” According to the Richmond casino’s website, in this high-limit baccarat betting area “highly qualified” hosts ensure VIPs “are treated to dedicated service around the clock.”

Gao also conducted “return on investment analysis for all VIP-related events and marketing initiatives,” her profile says.

The investigation of a prominent River Rock employee comes while Peter German, the independent reviewer hired by Attorney-General David Eby, continues to probe the circumstances that allowed VIP gamblers from China to flood B.C. casinos with suspicious cash. Eby hired German following the release last September of an audit by MNP, which revealed that about $13.5 million in $20 bills was accepted in River Rock Casino in July 2015. Police fear much of the cash was proceeds of crime from drug-traffickers.