Saracen Casino Board Votes To Fire Two Top Executives
The board that oversees Saracen Casino Resort in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, has voted unanimously to recommend firing the property's two top executives, General Manager Matt Harkness and Chief Market Officer Carlton Saffa, over allegations they ran a competing business on the side and mismanaged the resort's finances.
The Downstream Development Authority of the Quapaw Nation, which operates Saracen through subsidiary Saracen Development LLC, passed Resolution No. 92426-A by a 5-0 vote on Thursday, September 24.
The recommendation now goes to the Quapaw Nation Business Committee, whose approval is required before either executive can actually be terminated.
What The Resolution Alleges
According to the resolution, Harkness and Saffa created and marketed a separate company called GamePhysics to third parties within Arkansas's gambling industry while both were still employed by Saracen. The Authority determined that conduct breached their obligation not to engage in conflicting employment activities and, on its own, constitutes good cause for termination.
The board also found that Harkness "failed to exercise the care, diligence and financial oversight required for the management of Saracen's finances," and that this gross negligence contributed to the online casino resort's financial instability.
Separately, the resolution says both executives approved sponsorships and donations that exceeded Saracen's policy limits without the required majority board vote, which it labels additional "gross misconduct and negligence."
Saffa And Harkness's Roles At Saracen
Saffa has been one of the more public faces of Saracen's gambling operation, including leading the casino's past push for statewide mobile iGaming and its BetSaracen sports betting platform. Harkness has run the property as general manager since it opened.
The two-page resolution, first published online, was signed by Authority chairman Billy Shapp and secretary Hoshi Henry.
Saracen Casino Resort is owned by the Quapaw Nation and is one of three licensed casinos in Arkansas, alongside Southland Casino Hotel in West Memphis and Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort in Hot Springs.
What Happens Next
A board recommendation is not itself a firing. The Quapaw Nation Business Committee, whose members are elected by the tribe, still has to approve the terminations before Harkness and Saffa formally lose their positions.
As of Friday, September 26, it remained unclear whether the Business Committee had voted on the recommendation. Saracen Casino Resort opened in October 2020 as part of a $350 million development by the Quapaw Nation in Jefferson County.
The Pine Bluff property has 1,700 slot machines, 40 table games, Arkansas's only poker room and the BetSaracen sportsbook, and it is one of only three licensed casinos in the state, alongside Southland Casino Hotel and Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort.
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