Crime
US Attorney Charges 6 With Illegal Gambling, Money Laundering in Texas
TYLER, Texas — (Associated Press) - Authorities say six people from east Texas have been charged with illegal gambling, money laundering and drug trafficking.
U.S. attorney John Bales says police seized more than $30,000 in cash during the arrest earlier this week. Officers also took several firearms and methamphetamine.
Thailand Nabs 5064 for Betting on World Cup
Note to self: If planning to place wagers on the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Thailand is probably not the best option.
Police in that Southeastern Asian nation announced the arrest of 5064 people for illegally gambling on this year’s World Cup. That is a sharp increase from four years ago, according to media reports. 3800 were arrested at that time.
Eight Accused of Illegal World Cup Betting in Las Vegas
LAS VEGAS (Associated Press) — Eight people from Malaysia, China and Hong Kong were accused Monday of operating a temporary, illegal gambling ring from exclusive high-roller villas at a Las Vegas Strip resort that investigators said logged millions of dollars in bets on FIFA World Cup soccer games.
Moldea: ‘No Fewer Than 26 Past and Present NFL Team Owners had Ties to Mafia’
MediaBistro.com reveals that five eBooks have been selected as part of an ongoing series curated for Open Road Integrated Media by NYU Professor of Media Studies Mark Crispin Miller.
Among those titles, Dan E. Moldea’s “Interference”.
WSOP: Jeff Madsen Arrest and Ejection From Rio a Hoax
Tweets made last week from the World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas by poker pro Jeff Madsen about getting arrested for drugs and being banned from the event venue were not true, Gambling911.com can confirm.
The remarks, made on Madsen's Twitter feed last Thursday, July 3, were simply attempts at humor by the three-time WSOP bracelet-winner who is known for his wacky sense of humor and quirky personality.
Nahmad Partied Hard Before Jail Stint: Had Role in Russian Mafia Gambling Ring
The New York Post this weekend reported that art gallery owner Helly Nahmad was spotted partying with the likes of magician David Blaine and other big name celebrities the weeks leading up to his 366 day jail sentence.
Online Gambling Operators in France Detained for Running Illegal Bitcoin Exchange
TOULOUSE, France – (Reuters) - French police have dismantled an illegal Bitcoin exchange and seized 388 virtual currency units worth some 200,000 euros ($272,800) in the first such operation in Europe, a public prosecutor said on Monday.
Jeff Madsen Not Banned From 2014 WSOP for Pot Possession After All
Poker pro Jeff Madsen appeared to have been banned from this year’s World Series of Poker after Rio Casino security officials removed him from the property for possession of marijuana.
Madsen claimed on his Twitter account that he had taken some cannabis into a WSOP PLO event to throw into the “pot”, so to speak.
On Sunday, Madsen declared he would be playing in the Main Event after all.
He had earlier tweeted:
Van Der Sloot Marries Pregnant Girlfriend in Prison
Joran van der Sloot married his pregnant Peruvian girlfriend in prison Friday. The Dutchman is serving a 28-year-old sentence for the 2010 murder of another Peruvian woman.
Van der Sloot, 26, married Leidy Figueroa in Lima's Piedras Gordas penitentiary during a small midday ceremony. She is expected to give birth in September.
Van der Sloot was convicted of killing 21-year-old female Peruvian student Stephany Flores. He met her in a Lima casino while following the Latin American Poker Tour.
China Jails 68 People in Online Gambling Bust: Up to Nine Years Prison Time
(Reuters) - China has jailed 68 people for up to nine years for online gambling, state media said on Friday, making it the country's largest such bust of a ring, which was valued at $78 billion.
The group operated in the southern province of Guangdong via overseas gambling websites between March 2008 and April 2013, using the sites to lure bettors and take commissions, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Ex-Mob Boss Son Convicted in Looting of Company
Camden, N.J. – (Associated Press) - The son of a former Philadelphia mob boss and another reputed mob associate were convicted Thursday of federal fraud charges for taking over a Texas-based mortgage company and then plundering its assets to buy homes, luxury cars, a plane and a yacht.
Man Convicted of Shooting Player Over $5 Poker Hand
A North Carolina man has been convicted and sentenced to serve up to 60 months behind bars for shooting a fellow poker player over a $5 hand.
Prentice Reaves was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury by a Columbus County jury on Tuesday.
The incident began as a friendly poker game and quickly turned violent.
Poker Pro Johannes Strassmann Body Found in River
A 29-year-old professional poker player from Germany who went missing June 21 has been found dead.
Slovenian police confirmed that a body found in the Ljublijianica River this past Friday is that of Johannes Strassmann.
The poker pro had been visiting some fellow players. He went missing after a trip to the town of Ljubljana.
Ohio Man Gets 7 Years in Poker Chip Robbery
CANTON, Ohio (Associated Press) — A northeast Ohio man has been sentenced to seven years in prison after admitting his role in the January home-invasion robbery of a professional poker player.
Police in Canton said 25-year-old Christopher Lucius and another man broke into the home and stole $150,000 in casino chips and cash at gunpoint from Jerad Klick.
The (Canton) Repository (http://bit.ly/1ixOTuI ) reports Lucius halted his trial Wednesday to take a plea deal. He pleaded guilty to charges including aggravated robbery, aggravated burglary and aggravated theft.
Rochester Area Restaurant Owners Charged With Running Offshore Sportsbook
Three Rochester, New York area men have been indicted on 23 counts for their role in running an offshore sportsbook.
Verdict Upheld Against ‘Girls Gone Wild’ Founder in Wynn Slander Suit
LOS ANGELES (Associated Press) — An appellate court on Monday upheld a $19 million judgment against "Girls Gone Wild" founder Joe Francis in a slander case filed over his claims that casino mogul Steve Wynn had threatened to kill him.
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The California 2nd District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles found no basis to overturn the judgment or order a new trial, and the justices also left in place an injunction barring Francis from repeating the claims.
Jonathan Duhamel Ex-Girlfriend Wants More Prison Time: Lead Home Invasion
The former girlfriend of 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event champion Jonathan Duhamel wants to remain in prison, the Winnipeg Sun reported late last week.
Leonardo DiCaprio Used as ‘Bait’ for Poker Games: Toby Maguire ‘Hannibal Lecter’
Indicted poker madam Molly Bloom tells all in her newly published book “Molly’s Game”. Bloom told ABC News “Spiderman” star Toby Maguire used marquee Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio as bait to lure in big fish to play in her games.
Macau Authorities Bust US$645 Million World Cup Betting Ring
Authorities in Macau have arrested 22 individuals in connection with a worldwide US$645 million FIFA World Cup betting syndicate. This is believed to be the biggest raid ever on a sports betting ring in the Chinese gambling enclave.
According to CNN, the illegal enterprise utilized three hotel rooms to take both Internet and phone wagers with one gambler placing a US$5 million bet.
Pope Francis Denounces, Ex-Communicates Italian Mafia: Could Become Target
In the strongest language ever to come from the Vatican against Italy’s powerful and often brutal Mafia, Pope Francis denounced the criminal enterprise and ex-communicated all Mafia members this weekend.
Senior Citizens Busted in New Jersey Gambling Ring: Made $3 Mil in a Year
29 individuals were arrested for their role in running an illegal gambling business out of Northern New Jersey. Nearly all the men charged are over the age of 50.
One of the individuals, Daniel Pronti, 70, was suspended without pay from his job as a Jersey City Department of Public Works employee on Thursday.
Elizabeth Warren Endorses Tierney: Wife Served Time in Offshore Gambling Case
Massachusetts Senior Senator Elizabeth Warren has endorsed eight-time Democratic incumbent Congressman John Tierney, who is expected to fight a tough primary this upcoming November.
Gambling911.com readers became familiar with Tierney after his wife Patrice was charged for her role in the operation of her brother Robert Eremian’s offshore gambling enterprise. She served as an accountant for the long established Antigua-based gambling business, Sports Off Shore.
Mobster Matthew ‘Matty’ Guglielmetti Released From Prison After 10 Years
A New England mob associate, Matthew ‘Matty’ Guglielmetti, was released from prison last week after serving 10 years. He will now be under house confinement according to reports.
The 65-year-old Guglielmetti is a high ranking figure in the powerful Patriarca crime family of La Costa Nostra. He plead guilty to drug trafficking over a decade ago but was also said to be active in the family’s gambling and loan sharking business.
Florida Prosecutors Want Ex-FBI Agent Conviction in Murder of Gambling Exec
MIAMI - (Associated Press) — Florida prosecutors are asking an appeals court to reconsider its decision to toss the murder conviction and prison sentence for a former FBI agent in a mob-style killing linked to jailed Boston mobster James "Whitey" Bulger.
Men Who Escaped Quebec Prison Via Helicopter had Mob Ties
The three men who escaped a Quebec prison over the weekend via helicopter each had ties to the Mob and Hell’s Angels.
Yves Denis, 35, Denis Lefebvre, 53, and Serge Pomerleau, 49, broke out of the Quebec province jail Saturday evening.
"The helicopter landed in a courtyard at the detention center," police spokeswoman Ann Mathieu told the French news channel RDI on Sunday.
€242,230 Seized From 2010 Paddy Power Irish Open Runner Up Proceeds of Crime
Poker player Paul Carr, 34, will not be getting his €242,230 back. Authorities seized the money as part of two separate probes and determined last week that funds were derived through criminal activities.
FBI Probe Into Illegal Gambling Business Details Prosecutor’s Extortion Plot
JOPLIN, Mo. — (Associated Press) - Hundreds of pages of reports from an FBI investigation into illegal gambling in Joplin and the surrounding areas show a wide-ranging vice operation that involved influential people in southwest Missouri and southeast Kansas.
The Joplin Globe (http://bit.ly/SoJHN0 ) obtained more than 600 pages of documents in response to a Freedom of Information request the newspaper filed in 2012 because the investigation had led to the firing of a Joplin police officer and indictments against three bookmakers.
Gambino Capo Gets Life Sentence for Double Homicide, Heroin Dealing, Gambling
Gambino Crime Family captain Bartolomeo “Bobby Glasses” Vernace, 65, has been sentenced to life in prison for a double homicide committed 33 years ago over a spilled drink. He will not be eligible for parole.
Sports Betting Billy Walters on FBI Probe: ‘I Am Innocent of Doing Anything Wrong’
Legendary sports betting professional Billy Walters spoke to CNBC on Tuesday insisting he did nothing wrong in regard to an insider trading probe. Walters, billionaire investor Carl Icahn and golfer Phil Nickelson have each been tied to the ongoing FBI and SEC investigation. Nickelson said over the weekend that he is fully cooperating with the Feds.
FBI Unable to Tap Phone Calls of Gambler Billy Walters as Part of SEC Probe
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) will be unable to use electronic surveillance in its investigation into golf pro Phil Mickelson and professional sports gambler Billy Walters. Public knowledge of a probe into alleged insider trading prevents the law enforcement agency from tapping into the phones of both individuals.
