What To Expect If You Run An Illegal Online Gambling Business In America.

In the Western District of Missouri, a sixth man has recently pleaded guilty to online gambling related charges in a federal court. If found guilty, the US Attorney’s Office can pass a five year sentence in a federal prison in his role as manager of an online gambling business that has targeted the US market. The investigation from which the man was caught has so far lead to guilty pleas from five other individuals involved in the illegal online gambling business.  

The United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, Beth Phillips, has said that the man had waivered his rights to be heard before a grand jury, deciding to plead guilty before Greg Kays, US District Judge, to federal charges of conducting an illegal gambling business.

Because the man decided to plead guilty to the charges levelled at him, he also agrees to pay $40,000 for the government; the sum represents the man’s share in the profits made by the online gambling business.

The man accepted charges covering a period from the 1^st of March 2006 to the 31^st of March 2009, that he participated in an illegal bookmaking business for sport, which operated from Kansas City. He was responsible for a customer based that included American citizens from Kansas City and surrounding areas. As a bookmaker, the man received a small percentage from the winnings made, the total amounts of the winnings equate to roughly $300,000.

The illegal online bookmakers allowed bettors to dial a free-phone 1-800 number and gave them access to a website. The process of placing a bet required that the bettor contacted the bookmakers either by phone of by internet, giving their account numbers and passwords and then placing the bet they wanted. Each person who was involved in running the scam also used a separate free-phone number and website, which allowed them to track the activities, and account balances of their customers.

The free-phone numbers were both routed out of the United States to a company in Costa Rica, who employed several individuals to run the bookmaking business. Within the set-up, the company located in Costa Rica was used as the internet setting for the operation as a whole, it took all the bets and kept records of the customers betting habits and the games that they played; all the information was stored on computers that were also located in Costa Rica.

The Costa Rican company did not take any profit from the wagering activity directly, but charged the illegal bookmakers a fee for the management of accounts.

Federal law dictates that the individuals involved, if found guilty, face a prison sentence of up to five years with no chance of parole, as well as an additional fine of $250,000. Sentencing will be determined after the investigation has been completed by the United States Probation Office.

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