Former Star boss criticised during inquiry

Star Entertainment Group’s former chief financial officer Christina Katsibouba said she was prepared to forfeit financial benefits by resigning after she lost “faith and confidence in the integrity” of then chief executive Robbie Cooke, the second Adam Bell inquiry has heard.

Ms Katsibouba said she knew the resignation would mean she would lose certain salary incentives and her official exit from the company was recorded as a dismissal without cause, not a resignation. Under questioning from counsel assisting the inquiry Caspar Conde, Ms Katsibouba said Star’s leadership team was “dysfunctional”.

“The most important thing for me was the ability and the appetite of the leadership team to discuss and progress an adequate business plan that addressed earnings deterioration and work to reverse that,” said Ms Katsibouba. “I didn’t think that the team had the ability or the appetite to do that.”

Star’s former chief customer officer George Hughes meanwhile has told the inquiry that Mr Cooke refused to share critical reports from casino special manager Nicholas Weeks with his senior leadership team.

Mr Hughes said that at a leadership meeting in early December last year, Mr Cooke had provided “verbal updates” on the reports from Mr Weeks but he declined a request by chief legal officer Betty Ivanoff to see a copy. “I remember he said he didn’t have the authority to share and it was down to the discretion of the board,” Mr Hughes said.

Mr Weeks’ reports criticised Star for lagging reform efforts.