30 Indicted in Queens on Offshore Betting Charges

(nytimes.com ) -By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS- Thirty people and a corporation were indicted in Queens in connection with an offshore sports betting operation with links to organized crime that took in a “staggering” half-billion dollars in wagers, New York authorities said on Wednesday.

Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said the betting ring was handling a “staggering amount of money.”

It collected more than $567 million in a 28-month period and accepted wagers on many sports, including football, basketball and hockey, the authorities said.

Richard A. Brown , the Queens district attorney, said in a statement that the investigation uncovered evidence the betting operation had links to the Gambino and Genovese crime families. He said the gambling operation generated an average of more than $20 million a month.

The ring used a wire room in Panama to maintain gambling accounts, according to the indictment.

Authorities said they seized more than $3 million in cash during a 38-month investigation, called Operation Betting It All. They said they were still tracking down assets belonging to the ring.

Twenty-seven suspects have been arrested. The police are looking for three others — two of whom are believed to be in Panama.

Two defendants are accused of using Web sites and toll-free telephone numbers to accept wagers.

The defendants were charged with enterprise corruption, money laundering, conspiracy and promoting gambling. If convicted, they each face up to 25 years in prison.

Prosecutors were also seeking $125 million in forfeitures from 20 of the defendants.

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Original Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/22/nyregion/22ring.html?_r=1
Date Retrieved: October 22, 2009