BetOnSports Kaplan to Serve Four Years in US Jail

BetOnSports, one of the world's largest offshore sports gambling companies was put out of business a while back when the ban on internet gambling came into force in the USA. Now a few years later the former CEO of the company has been put in jail for a four year stint for his roll in running the operation. Gary Kaplan, also forfeited $43.6 million in revenue as part of a plea bargain. Prosecutors speculate that this sum is only half of Kaplan's real worth and that the founder of BetOnSports still has millions stashed in a Swiss bank. Kaplan who is fifty years old was captured in March of 2007 in Puerto Rico and has for two years and seven months been in custody awaiting trial on the various charges. U.S. District Judge Carol Jackson said it was to be determined by the Bureau of Prisons whether or not Kaplan will get any credit for his time served thus far.

A federal grand jury brought charges against Kaplan, his company and several associates. All of the four other former executives, including two of Kaplan's close relatives have pleaded guilty to similar charges of racketeering conspiracy, violating the Wire Wager Act and conspiring to violate that Act.

Kaplan who founded the offshore betting company in 1995, set up entities in Aruba, Antigua and eventually Costa Rica. The firm actively solicited gamblers to place sports wagers by phone and over the Internet directly from their bank accounts. In 2004 BetOnSports had as many as 1 million registered customers and accepted more than 10 million sports wagers worth an estimated $1 billion. The company, which was then based in Costa Rica, employed approximately 1,700 people. When the company put forth a public offering on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market in 2004 it made an estimated $100 million that was put in Swiss banks. The long and extensive investigation concluded that the money gained from the BetOnSports operations was being used to expand it’s illegal business even financing the purchase of another completive betting company. When BetOnSports was closed down in 2006, customers who trusted the firm lost more than $16 million.