Mississippi and West Virginia have each approved new sports betting regulations, putting both states on track to launch legal wagering ahead of the upcoming NFL season.

On Thursday, the Mississippi Gaming Commission (MGC) approved final regulations governing sports betting at the state’s 28 brick-and-mortar gaming venues. By law, the regs will kick in 30 days from now, meaning local punters could be wagering on sports by late-July.

The regulations, an early draft of which first surfaced in May, allow for land-based wagering only, although mobile wagering will be permitted provided the bettor is physically present on casino property. Operators will pay 12% tax on their betting revenue.

As with the earlier draft, there is no ‘integrity fee’ or royalty payable to professional or college sports bodies. Mississippi will also allow punters to wager on Mississippi collegiate sports, unlike the new sports wagering rules in Delaware and New Jersey.

Atlantic City’s Ocean Resort Casino (ORC) has finally been issued a gaming license, just one week before its scheduled opening.

On Thursday, the New Jersey Casino Control Commission (CCC) formally approved ORC’s application for a gaming license. ORC began its licensing pitch to the CCC on Wednesday but the discussion spilled over into Thursday. Despite the in-depth probing, the CCC voted unanimously to approve ORC’s application.

The property, which formerly operated as Revel until declaring bankruptcy for the second time in 2014, plans its grand (re)opening on June 28. ORC owner Bruce Deifik told the CCC that he wouldn’t make the same mistakes that plagued the $2.4b Revel’s opening from day one.

For starters, Deifik said ORC will cater to all guests, not just high rollers. ORC CEO Frank Leone said the casino would ensure that “customers who don’t get personal attention at other properties get personal attention here.” That said, ORC will offer its VIPs the perks that Revel was notoriously stingy about.

Detroit police have busted a gang that preyed on high-rolling gamblers who won big at local casinos.

On Thursday, local CBS affiliate WDIV reported that three individuals had been arrested in connection with a scheme that involved several robberies and carjackings of victims who’d just left the MGM Grand Detroit and MotorCity casinos.

The incidents occurred last September, and involved one gang member observing activity in high-limit gambling areas, then following high-rollers into the properties’ parking garages to identify their vehicles. The other members of the gang would wait in the parking lot, then follow the VIPs’ vehicles in their own cars.

Once on the highway, the perps would bump their vehicles into the VIPs’ cars, prompting them to pull over to inspect the damage. When the victims emerged from their cars, the perps would pull pistols, then take the victims’ money and phones. Depending on the model, the perps would sometimes drive off in the victims’ cars.

Italian gambling operator HBG Gaming Group has become the 11th online licensee in Colombia’s regulated market.

This week, Colombian gambling regulator Coljuegos announced that HBG’s local subsidiary HBG Latam had received a five-year license to offer online sports betting and casino games via its AguiJuego brand. The aquijuego.co website currently features only a ‘coming soon’ splash screen, but does promise “the most interesting bets in the market.”

HBG will support the website launch via a retail network of points of sale “inspired by Italian best practices.” The company called the Colombia launch “the first step in the internationalization strategy of the HBG Gaming Group” and the company’s first “big opportunity” to make a name for itself on the global stage.

HBG is the first Italian operator to hang out its shingle in Colombia’s online market, which is increasingly taking on a more international flavor. Earlier this month, US operator Rush Street Interactive’s Rusbet.co site received its official diploma from Coljuegos.