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BetOnSports Founder Pleads Guilty To Racketeering

Posted by Soulskill on from the ten-bucks-says-he-gets-the-maximum-sentence dept.

Hugh Pickens writes "The founder of Internet- and telephone-based gambling operation BetOnSports has entered guilty pleas to three US charges, including a racketeering charge, and will forfeit $43.7 million to the US government as part of a plea agreement. Beginning in the mid- to late-1990s, Gary Kaplan set up businesses in Antigua and later Costa Rica to provide sports betting services to US residents through web sites and toll-free telephone numbers. Those numbers terminated in Houston or Miami, and were then forwarded to Costa Rica by satellite transmitter or fiber-optic cable. Some of Kaplan's web servers were located in Miami and were remotely controlled from Costa Rica. People became customers by depositing money in a BetOnSports account. By 2004, the BetOnSports organization's principal base of operations in Costa Rica employed about 1,700 people, had nearly one million registered customers and accepted more than 10 million sports bets. Now bankrupt, BetOnSports took in $1.25 billion in 2004, with 98 percent of that revenue coming from bets made through its web site by clients in the United States. 'Gary Kaplan made millions of dollars by making it too easy for people to gamble away their hard-earned money without having to leave their homes,' said FBI agent John Gillies. 'Today's guilty plea should have a lasting effect because Kaplan was not only the founder of BetOnSports, he was also one of the pioneers of illegal online gambling.'"

5 of 223 comments (clear)

  1. Who was he hurting? by BadAnalogyGuy · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The only one hurt in this operation was the American government who didn't get their cut.

    The internet exposes many holes in the law, the most obvious one being locality in this case. What's the difference between driving to the nearby rez for some Pai Gow and going online to bet on the ponies?

    1. Re:Who was he hurting? by Jurily · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Another classic example why victimless crimes should be abolished. We're told that people over 18 are mature enough to make their own decisions in life.

      BTW, do the same agencies raid Las Vegas too, or is only internet gambling the work of the devil?

  2. Oh noes! by DurendalMac · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "Gary Kaplan made millions of dollars by making it too easy for people to gamble away their hard-earned money without having to leave their homes"

    I can't be trusted! Protect me, nanny state!

  3. The real reason by Vinegar+Joe · · Score: 5, Insightful

    'Gary Kaplan made millions of dollars by making it too easy for people to gamble away their hard-earned money without having to leave their homes,' said FBI agent John Gillies.

    The IRS was pissed it wasn't getting a cut of the action.

    --
    "The average reporter we talk to is 27 years old......They literally know nothing." - Ben Rhodes
  4. Re:Victimless crimes? by nedlohs · · Score: 5, Insightful

    We also only allow people to buy a six-pack of beer a week, right?

    And only jog 30 minutes a day?

    And only eat 1 chocolate bar every 2 days?

    And only watch TV for 2 hours a day?