Sheldon Adelson denies Las Vegas Sands involvement in Jacobs firing

Sheldon Adelson denied Las Vegas Sands officials played any role in firing Steve Jacobs from his position as Sands China CEO in July 2010. The Chairman and CEO of Las Vegas Sands (LVS) was heard for the third time on Monday regarding the case of the company opposing Steve Jacobs. The latter says he was wrongfully fired in 2010.
“Never heard the phrase”, Mr. Adelson said after being questioned by Jacob’s lawyer, James Pisanelli, about any knowledge of an “exorcism strategy” to fire his client. “Las Vegas Sands had nothing do with his termination”, he added, according to Associated Press.
On Monday, Adelson maintained that the termination of Steve Jacobs was handled by Sands China board member Mike Leven and that the key decisions and documents related to it were not handled in Las Vegas by parent company LVS.
The 81-year old billionaire also spoke out against the “fabricated, outrageous, blackmailing” allegations of misconduct that the former Sands China CEO Steve Jacobs says he was fired for attempting to make public.
Sheldon Adelson went as far as to present a list he had written with LVS President Michael Leven that detailed 35 reasons for dismissing Jacobs.
However, while Adelson was reading the list he knocked one reason out. “There were at least 34 good reasons”, he stressed afterwards.
In relation to the reasons to dismiss the former CEO of the company, Jacobs’ lawyer showed a termination letter dated July 23, 2010 signed by Mr. Adelson. The 47-word letter contained no reasons at all for the decision. James Pisanelli also showed another letter dated August 5, 2010 concerning the reasons for the action and it had only 12 items.
“I wanted him to be fired for many months for many reasons. Period”, Adelson said. “When this case gets to the merits, and there are …
(people) sitting in the jury box, the reasons will be discussed. And they’ll be backed up by experts that will say that any one of those reasons was sufficient”, he added as quoted by Associated Press.
Adelson attacks Jacobs
During his testimony, the CEO of Las Vegas Sands also criticised the attitude of Steve Jacobs, when the latter was working in Macau for Sands China.
“He was pompous. He was arrogant. He was condescending. He thought he was the be-all and the end-it-all,” Adelson, who now is also the CEO and Chairman of Sands China, said.
However, according to British newspaper The Guardian, Adelson stated that Steve Jacobs was never important until the case broke out.
“This Jacobs never became important until he squealed like a pig to the government authorities and made up stories,” Adelson said, as quoted by The Guardian.
While working at Sands China Jacobs refused to make a US$700,000 payment to Lionel Alves. According to court records, the Macanese lawyer would play many roles for Sands, including applying pressure and restoring Adelson’s relationships with Chinese officials who had apparently been put off by his manners. Later on, Steve Jacobs would dismiss Alves’ services but Adelson rehired the lawyer and member of the Macau Legislative Assembly.