888 Founder Dies in Plane Crash, Michael Jordan Gambling 'Never an Issue'

Submitted by Jagajeet Chiba on

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Jagajeet Chiba

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Shay Ben-Yitzhak, one of four co-founders of the global online gambling firm 888, has died in a plane crash.


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The tragedy occurred on Saturday in Sharon, Israel shortly after takeoff.

Ben-Yitzhak had reportedly been piloting the private plane with his 11-year-old son, who survived but was seriously injured.

The 52-year-old was the last of the four founders to relinquish control of the company in 2010.

Investigations into the crash continues.

While Episode 6 of the hit documentary "Last Dance" touched heavily on the subject of NBA superstar Michael Jordan's gambling, Jordan insists he never had a problem.

The sixth episode of the hit ESPN docuseries covered the Bulls’ 1993 Eastern Conference Finals showdown with the Knicks, when Jordan’s gambling entered the national spotlight. After Chicago dropped the first two games of the series to New York, it emerged Jordan had been in Atlantic City the night before Game 2. 

A New York Times report said he was seen in the casino lobby as late as 2:30 a.m., and Jordan appeared tired in that second game. In a present-day interview, Jordan maintains that it was all overblown, and the Atlantic City trip didn’t affect his play at all. 

“We got a limo, we went and gambled for a couple hours, and we came back,” Jordan says. “Everybody went totally ballistic. It wasn’t late. We got home by 12:30, 1 o’clock.”

- Jagajeet Chiba, Gambling911.com

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