According to reports released by the Associate Press, numerous individuals and corporations across four different states have been arrested in connection with a billion-dollar-a-year online gambling operation.  The Queens District Attorney’s Office, which made an announcement about the arrests, has not yet released all the details, but Kevin Ryan, a spokesperson from the office, said that one of the corporations is an offshore Internet company with an American counterpart.  The DA’s announcement came shortly after unconfirmed reports on the Gambling 911 portal about 32 sportsbooks agents that had been raided in New York on Tuesday.

Ryan stated that the case is “...one of the first times that a Web designer corporation and the companies that maintain the Web sites have been charged”.

Ryan further stated that the arrests are the first Internet gambling charges that have been made since President Bush signed into law the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act.  The arrests were a combined effort of the New York Police Department and the District Attorney’s office.

While the individuals and corporations arrested have not yet been named, Ryan did say that “we have initiated a $500 million asset forfeiture case”, making it one of the largest cases of its kind in New York history.  The states where the arrests were made have also not yet been identified.

The charges come after a two-year international investigation that focused on Internet gambling.  A midday news conference, scheduled by Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly and Queens DA Richard Brown, was set to display the seized cash and assets, which included artwork, gold coins, jewelry, and sports memorabilia.

Posted on: November 30, 2006

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