The BetonSports Debacle
It’s actually going to be somewhat of a relief now to have finally concluded the
bulk of the BetonSports saga that has dragged on and on over the past three
years. The US courts have been incredibly slow in prosecuting two individuals
linked to an illegal online casino betting operation. Gary Kaplan’s name rang
through the industry media several months ago as he accepted a plea agreement
with the courts and paid out millions of dollars as part of a punishment for
racketeering charges related to the operation of BetonSports throughout 2004 and
beyond. David Carruthers on the other hand acted as CEO of the now defunct
online casino betting group and his plea agreement did not go quite as strongly,
he was just recently sentenced to 33 months in prison – and that’s in addition
to the three years of house arrest that he has already served.
BetonSports went well beyond just operating as an online casino gambling and
betting group aimed at US players, the company is accused on racketeering and
money laundering charges as well as a litany of other illegal activities. That’s
quite different than the cases that the US Department of Justice brought against
companies like Party Gaming, who operated legitimate online casinos within the
US market. The BetonSports saga comes to an end this month with both the founder
and the CEO with sentences handed down, but the warning left by this company
will last much longer than this case, and even longer than Carruthers’ three
year sentence.
The United States is a powerful country and not one to be messed with – that’s a
strong message. In the case the United States used the full reach of its powers
to have Kaplan extradited from Dominca and brought back to the US for trial. It
also investigated offshore bank accounts and handed down lengthy sentences and
punishments for those individuals who played such key roles in operating the
illegal online casino gambling and betting company. |