Kansas Man Charged With Running Illegal Gambling Operation

Submitted by Gary on Fri, 2010-02-12 at 20:39

The state of Kansas has laid its first charge against an illegal gambling operation. The man was said to be running a sports betting business where he provided either a telephone number or website to bettors. Both of these outlets routed to a company in Costa Rica, where online gambling is permitted.

The man admitted to paying out players and collected cash for bets in person on a weekly basis and then calling them in to the offshore company. The man has pled guilty and agreed to waive his rights to have his case tried before a grand jury. In return for the guilty plea, he will not be called upon as a witness in any cases against other illegal gambling operators.

The sentence for this crime could be anywhere from six months to two years in a federal prison with the likelihood of leniency due to the defendant’s cooperation. This marks the first charge in Kansas against illegal online gambling operations and the state has promised to look into these issues further.

Online gambling remains illegal in Kansas as per the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) unless any changes are made at the federal level. The United States is divided when it comes to online gambling as some states believe in regulation while others are too concerned about the detrimental effects on society. A final decision regarding regulated online gambling is expected to be made by June 2010.