Former managers at Richmond's River Rock casino testified that executives complained about investigators probing foreign high-rollers for suspected drug-cash transactions.

The Cullen Commission also heard allegations that casino employees may have worked with "well-known" loan sharks in organized crime.

Austin Cullen issued his first interim report on Thursday, commenting on the inquiry's mandate and evidence produced so far.

Insp. Wayne Holland told a public inquiry into money laundering that in 2008, he presented a report that showed how organized crime, money laundering and loan sharking were deeply embedded in B.C. Lottery Corporation casinos. His unit was disbanded in 2009.

The Cullen Commission released some of the transcripts of recorded conversations between former solicitor-general Kash Heed and former RCMP officer Fred Pinnock.

Mike Hiller, a former anti-money laundering investigator, said managers at the Crown corporation cast doubts on his concerns about the River Rock Casiso.

A former commander of the province's anti-illegal gaming unit told the Cullen Commission that he believes Rich Coleman "did not want to be told" about concerns at B.C. casinos.

The Lottery Corp. preferred to let casino management approach the VIPs diplomatically and educate them about appropriate methods of transaction, Tottenham said.

The inquiry also heard from a former employee at the River Rock casino who, in 2019, blew the whistle on when exactly Macau-style money laundering exploded in B.C.

The Cullen Commission has heard from Ken Ackles, formerly of the Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch, about reporting suspicious activity at the River Rock Casino.