Sign in / up

back to article Feds seek $566m from man in online gambling case

Federal prosecutors have accused a Canadian man of laundering more than $350m for offshore internet gambling operations to skirt US laws prohibiting payments to American citizens trying to cash out their winnings. Douglas Rennick, 34, was charged with three felony counts related to the alleged scheme by the US Attorney's …

COMMENTS

House rules Send corrections
This topic is closed for new posts.
  1. Tom 35

    Did they learn math from the RIAA?

    "laundering more than $350m"

    "almost $566m in proceeds"

    I don't see how this can add up...

    0 0
  2. Dick

    @Tom 35

    There's also an allegation related to the illegal gambling itself, the $566M is the combined proceeds from both activities.

    0 0
  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "Crime pays"

    Assuming he keeps a hundred million or so, if his jail sentence comes to anything more than 5 years in minimum security, I'm not sure I'd consider it 'paying', really...

    0 0
  4. Anonymous Coward
    Stop

    Defraud banks?

    "The indictment claims Rennick founded a series of businesses ... to defraud banks such as Washington Mutual and Wells Fargo."

    I thought defraud was if they banks lost the money. All the guy was doing was laundering the money to avoid a stupid law.

    0 0
  5. James O'Brien
    Joke

    @Tom 35

    Its called the conversion of American dollars to Canadian.........

    0 0
  6. Disco-Legend-Zeke

    Win the war on [drugs|gambling|prostitution]

    Governments never seem to learn that fighting a war on popular pastimes is a foolish waste of resources.

    Banning alcohol created the mafia, banning other drugs created street gangs and cartel war machines. Even the taliban derives its power from poppy fields.

    Ditto gambling, it just chases the money out of the country, and away from the tax collector.

    0 0
  7. Hugh_Pym

    Ahhh. The land of the free...

    Where a man can live as he wants to unfettered by ... oh wait.

    0 0
  8. Kevin Johnston

    @Defraud Banks

    It is fraud because he knowingly told porkies as what he was actually going to do was not legal so he 'fraudulantly obtained services'.

    0 0
  9. Anonymous Coward
    Boffin

    @AC

    Fraud doesn't necessarily mean the banks lose money. Fraud is basically just being dishonest for gain (he lied to the banks and made money out of it).

    > to avoid a stupid law

    Unfortunately, the law being stupid is not a valid defense.

    0 0
  10. frank ly

    gambling..... a mug's game?

    "...used to funnel money to US-based customers of online gambling sites,..."

    I thought that money was funneled _from_ customers of gambling enterprises (in general).

    Maybe this was the payout channel and their and stakes went via a different route.

    0 0
  11. Anonymous Coward
    Thumb Up

    @Disco-Legend-Zeke

    I completely agree.

    But not that prohibition 'created' the Mafia. They had been around since the mid-late 19th Century.

    The untouchables is still a good film though eh?

    0 0
  12. Anonymous Coward
    Heart

    @ frank ly

    Correct... It was the payout channel. The guy said it issued affiliate cheques, which means those customers who had gambled online got their proceeds through such 'affiliate cheques'. But because the proceeds were not from their activities as affiliates, but rather as a gambling activity, the reasoning was fraudulent and that's what got him bitten.

    And no, it was funnelling money TO US-based customers, after all, it was a pay-out channel. :-)

    0 0
  13. Atrox666
    Pirate

    It's the US .. fuck `em

    He's a Canadian. We shouldn't allow any extradition and tell them to go fuck themselves like they did with soft lumber.

    Canadians should not be affected by retarded US laws. They have no right to make laws for us.

    0 0
This topic is closed for new posts.

Other stories you might like