Former NBA star, Gilbert Arenas, arrested on illegal gambling charges
Arenas, former Washington Wizard, has been arrested with five other men, including a suspected Israeli organised crime figure, on charges relating to illegal gambling operations in Los Angeles.
Key points:
– Arenas is charged with three counts carrying potential five-year sentences each, and is alleged to have rented out his Encino mansion for illegal poker games
– Other defendants are accused of managing the games, hiring staff and taking a rake from games of Pot Limit Omaha poker
– Yevgeni Gershman, one of the defendants, is suspected of being a high-ranking figure within an Israeli organised crime group
Former Washington Wizards’ point guard Gilbert Arenas, known in his playing career as ‘Agent Zero,’ has been arrested along with five other men on charges relating to running an illegal gambling operation.
Although he isn’t said to have managed the operations directly, Arenas is alleged to have knowingly rented out a mansion he owned in Encino for high-stakes poker games and has been charged on three counts.
The indictment files one count of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business, one count of operating an illegal gambling business and a third count of making false statements to federal investigators.
Of the other five defendants, Yevgeni Gershman, who is facing accusations of helping to manage the illegal games, has a high-profile with law enforcement already.
He is named by the US District Attorney’s Office as a suspected high-level member of an Israeli transnational organised crime group.
Organising games of poker in your home is not illegal in the US, provided it doesn’t form part of a commercial enterprise.
Good to know: A poker table in ‘Gable House,’ according to incriminating images in the court report, featured prints reading ‘Arenas Poker Club’ and an image of a basketball player with a jersey labelled Arenas
As the group arrested are alleged to have taken a rake on games of “Pot Limit Omaha,” these events would qualify as a commercial enterprise and therefore are subject to state and federal gambling regulations.
The indictment also alleges that Gershman would hire young women to serve drinks, provide massages and offer companionship to players in exchange for tips, and along with Evgenni Tourevski, Allan Austria and Yarin Cohen, he would charge a tax on these tips.
Ievgen Krachun is the last defendant named and he is accused of having been a ‘chip runner.’ If the defendants are convicted, the statutory maximum sentences will be five years in federal prison for each count.
The NBA was drawn into another gambling controversy this year, with Malik Beasley being placed under investigation for suspected gambling linked to league games.
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