US prosecutors state MLB players were involved with illegal gambling
The affiliated California operation took a $5m bet on the Super Bowl in 2019
US prosecutors in Los Angeles charged a former minor league baseball player and his partner with conspiring to operate an illegal sports gambling business and website.
The player, Wayne Joseph Nix, and his partner Edon Yoshida Kagasoff had been operating since 2014 according to the government. It’s said that they closed operations in February of 2020. Nix even admitted to accepting more than $2,000 a day in wagers through websites and a call center controlled by Sand Island Sports in Costa Rica.
This multimillion-dollar operation is said to involve current and former professional athletes. Although individuals weren’t named by prosecutors, it’s said that a sports broadcaster intended to refinance his home to pay off his debts.
Prosecutors went on to say that in 2019 Nix took a $5 million bet from one individual on the outcome of the Super Bowl. Nix was also charged with failing to report almost $1.5m in income, which he admitted as part of his plea agreement.
Nix is said to have employed three former Major League Baseball players to help with the illegal operation. According to the US government, two customers of the gambling operation cashed at least $18.35m in checks at Sherman Oaks Check Cashing.
The check-cashing facility, in conjunction with the operation run by Nix and Kagasoff, agreed not to file currency transaction reports. Facilities are required to report transactions that exceed $10,000.
Sherman Oaks Check Cashing pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an effective money-laundering program and to pay a $500,000 fine.
Nix’s and Kagasoff’s sentences have yet to be announced, but each is facing charges and fines.
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