Crime
Brutal Japan Mob Boss Arrested for Gunning Man Down in Public
Japanese police arrested the leader of the brutal yakuza organised crime syndicate Thursday for the 1998 murder of a 70-year-old man.
Satoru Nomura, 67, the top leader of Kudokai, has long been considered one of the most dangerous yakuza crime syndicates in Japan.
Oscar Pistorius Found Not Guilty: Paddy Power Makes Payouts
Oscar Pistorius has been found Not Guilty of murdering his wife model Reeva Steenkamp in a case that has been widely covered by the gambling world following Irish bookmaker Paddy Power’s decision to take wagers on the outcome.
AP Source: Law Enforcement Agent Says NFL Received Ray Rice Tape Back in April
ATLANTIC CITY (Associated Press) — A law enforcement official says he sent a video of Ray Rice punching his then-fiancee to an NFL executive three months ago, while league officers have insisted they didn't see the violent images until this week.
Poker Princess Molly Bloom Fielding Offers to Turn Book Into Movie
In an interview with PokerNews.com, the so-called “Poker Princess” Molly Bloom discusses how she is currently fielding offers to turn her book “Molly’s Game” into a TV film.
The book takes readers inside the poker matches that Bloom ran in New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Las Vegas featuring big name celebrities and sports figures until it all came crashing down around her when she was indicted and ultimately plead guilty last year.
VictoryLand Trial Gets Under Way: Can Alabama Keep $223k Seized From Casino?
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (Associated Press) -- A lawyer for the closed VictoryLand casino in Shorter is arguing that other businesses in Alabama are still operating the same gambling machines VictoryLand had.
A civil trial opened Tuesday in Montgomery over whether the attorney general can destroy gambling machines seized in a 2013 raid.
VictoryLand attorney Joe Espy says electronic bingo games like the ones from VictoryLand are operating at two locations in Greene County and one in Houston County.
Woman Who Killed ‘Elvis’ Due in Court: Popular Poker Dealer Shot Dead
Joseph 'Elvis' Levine, 56, nicknamed for his uncanny resemblance to the late singer Elvis Presley, was fatally shot last week in his Las Vegas home. Now his killer has appeared in court.
Closure of Revel Casino May Have Helped With Release of Ray Rice Beating Video
The Baltimore Ravens organization claims they never had access to a shocking video that emerged Monday showing running back Ray Rice brutally knocking his then fiancé unconscious in an Atlantic City casino elevator.
Ravens head coach John Harbaugh re-iterated that the Ravens had only viewed the surveillance video Monday morning after TMZ.com released it on their website.
Ravens Odds to Win Super Bowl Doubled With Ray Rice ‘Wife Punch’ Video Released
The Baltimore Ravens odds of winning the 2015 Super Bowl have gone from 25-1 to 50-1 after that organization decided to terminate star running back Ray Rice following the release of a surveillance video showing him punch his then fiancé and drag her unconscious out of an Atlantic City casino elevator.
Trial Over Raid That Closed Alabama’s Largest Casino Starts Tuesday
MONTGOMERY, Alabama — (Associated Press) - A trial starting Tuesday in Montgomery could determine the future of what was once Alabama's largest casino.
VictoryLand casino in Shorter has been closed since Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange raided it in February 2013.
A civil trial starting Tuesday will determine whether the state can destroy the 1,615 gambling machines seized in the raid and keep the $223,405 in cash that was confiscated.
Strange says the games are illegal slot machines that should be destroyed.
Tierney in Trouble: Backlash Over SOS Gambling Biz Could Still Come Into Play
Democrat Massachusetts Rep. John Tierney is among the more vulnerable incumbents this election cycle. A survey from Emerson College Polling Society gives Tierney 47 percent support among likely primary voters compared to challenger Seth Moulton’s 44 percent. There is a 5-point margin of error.
Gambling Dad Arrested: Admits to Leaving Child in Car While Playing in Casino
Delaware State Police arrested a Maryland man for leaving his 14-year-old daughter in a running car unattended while he gambled inside the Harrington Raceway and Casino.
The incident occurred over the weekend. 26-year-old Justin Middleton of Preston, Maryland was taken into custody. He is charged with reckless endangering and other charges.
Police said the child did not appear to be in any distress and was turned over to a relative.
- Jagajeet Chiba, Gambling911.com
More Poker Players in Sweden Become Targets of Violence
Swedish poker players over the years have become targets of enterprising criminals. Last week, four armed bandits held up 15 players at a private game in Strömstad. The victims in this case happened to all be Norwegian.
From PokerNews.com:
The robbery began as four masked men armed with guns forced their way into the poker game at the Hogdal Bygdegård farm. Robbers then forced the poker players to the floor before robbing them.
High Profile Names of Denver Sports Betting Clients Will Not Be Released
Jeffrey Dorschner, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Colorado, has confirmed that the names of those appearing on a client list of a multi-million dollar Denver area sports betting ring will not be made public.
New York Post Asks if Phil Mickelson Will be Charged With Insider Trading
The Sunday New York Post reports that golfer Phil Mickelson could be looking at a lengthy prison sentence if found guilty of insider trading.
‘Ghost’ Fraudster Gets Nearly 5 Years Prison Sentence: Blames Gambling Problem
Canadian Ralph Sanon has been sentenced to 4-and-a-half years for stealing identities and raking in over $777,000 between the years 2011 and 2013.
Dubbed “the Ghost” by investigators, he would steal the victims identities then use bogus ID’s to get unsuspecting banks to provide him with fresh debit cards and PIN numbers, allowing Sanon to essentially drain the accounts of victims.
Sanon got his nickname for his elusiveness.
At the pre-sentencing, he claimed to have fallen into the wrong crowd and developed a gambling addiction.
Two Suspects Detained for Abduction and Murder of Internet Gambling Millionaire
Just one day after it was revealed that kidnapped Taiwanese Internet gambling millionaire Shih Chia-chin had been found dead, his alleged captors and killers were detained in the southern part of Taiwan on Tuesday.
Kidnapped Internet Gambling Millionaire Found Dead
A Taiwan businessman who reportedly amassed tens of millions of US dollars from illegal gambling has been murdered by his kidnappers, police confirmed on Monday.
Van der Sloot Threatens to Kill Warden, Gets Transferred to Remote Prison
A Dutchman accused of killing 21-year-old Peruvian student Stephany Flores has been moved to a remote penitentiary after authorities claim he threatened to kill the warden of the prison where he is serving 28 years.
Denver Area Bookie Client List Could Prove Damaging Following Guilty Plea
As reported earlier this month by Gambling911.com, Denver area bookies and agents alike may be looking over their shoulder this football season….Worse still, they could be fearing that dreaded early AM knock on their door.
That’s because one of the state’s largest bookmaking operations has been taken down and the client’s list reportedly reads like a “Who’s Who of Denver’s Elite”.
Did Poker Pro Daniel Cates Hire Hitman to Try and Off Noah Boeken?
Poker pro Daniel Cates engaged in an online chat with fellow pro Noah Boeken whereby he suggested the hiring of a hitman.
The threat came moments after Cates accused Boeken of account sharing with Finland pro Patrik Antonius.
Upstate New York Bookies In the Line of Fire: Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse, Albany
If you are a bookie doing business in upstate New York, better be careful. Local law enforcement in that region from Rochester to Albany have been quite aggressive in recent years when it comes to quashing what it deems to be illegal sports betting rings.
Co-Founder of Pinnacle Sports George Molsbarger Charges Dismissed
The District Attorney's Office for Queens County, New York, dismissed all criminal charges today in its $50 million Internet sports betting and enterprise corruption case against prominent Southern California philanthropist George Molsbarger. Mr. Molsbarger, 68 years old, of Santa Monica, Calif., heads the Squid and Squash Foundation, a leading and innovative foundation that has given millions of dollars to improving education and the lives of underserved children.
Two Men Who Ran Online Gambling Biz With Ties to NHL Players Appear in Court
Two individuals accused of running a local Rochester, New York gambling ring appeared in court on Wednesday.
The case made national headlines as three NHL players, including Sabres former captain Thomas Vanek, questioned in connection with the probe.
’Lucky Luciano: Mysterious Tales of a Gangland Legend’ Dispels Rumors, Confirms Others
Author Christian Cipollini has a new book out that Dan Willis of the Pittsburgh City Paper says is “devoted to its objectivity” in telling a story about the Mob, with the primary focus being on Charles “Lucky” Luciano, one of the most notorious mobsters.
Luciano and his fellow mobsters were involved in everything from bootlegging liquor during prohibition to gambling and murder.
Was Benny Binion an FBI Snitch?
Norm Clarke of the Las Vegas Review Journal has written a piece this week that Las Vegas gaming legend Benny Binion became an FBI informant shortly after leaving prison and retaking control of the Horseshoe casino.
Cleveland Man Charged With Cheating Over 100 Times at Horseshoe Casino
Vaughn Perry, 40, of Cleveland, Ohio, has been indicted for cheating over 100 times at the popular Horseshoe Casino. The charges include grand theft and 139 charges of illegal gambling.
The grand theft charge alleges Perry had illegal winnings of $8,240.
China Declares War on Decadence, Drugs, Gambling
The Chinese Government is set to launch a major crackdown on drugs, prostitution, gambling and overall decadence.
MO Gov at Center of Ferguson Shooting Incident was First Online Gambling Zealot
Missouri Governor Jay Nixon (D) has come under heavy criticism for his handling of the Ferguson, Missouri police fatal shooting of an unarmed Black teenager and its subsequent protests.
Following the shooting, it took a number of days for Nixon to make an appearance in Ferguson, a St. Louis suburb. He eventually had to call a state of emergency after some of the protests turned violent.
Our own Thomas Somach notes that Nixon’s past history as it relates to the world of online gambling is not a pretty one.
One Less Presidential Hopeful Backing Adelson Online Gambling Agenda: Rick Perry Indicted
AUSTIN, Texas (Associated Press) - A grand jury indicted Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Friday for allegedly abusing the powers of his office by carrying out a threat to veto funding for state prosecutors investigating public corruption - making the possible 2016 presidential hopeful his state's first indicted governor in nearly a century.
Whitey Bulger Attorneys File Appeal
BOSTON – (Associated Press) - Former Boston crime boss James "Whitey" Bulger is appealing the federal conviction that sent him to prison for life last year, arguing that he was unable to fully present his defence.
Bulger, who's 84, was convicted and sentenced on racketeering charges that tied him to 11 murders and other gangland crimes from the 1970s and '80s.
