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Saturday, November 20, 1999
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
Walters indicted again
While the state hopes the third time is the charm, the accused says he's the victim of malicious prosecution.
By Peter O'Connell
Review-Journal
A Clark County grand jury again has indicted golf course developer and professional gambler Billy Walters on charges arising from the transportation of what prosecutors say were proceeds from illegal sports bets.
The indictment unsealed Friday relies upon many of the same facts and allegations contained in two prior indictments dismissed by a judge.
However, the latest indictment contains modifications that address District Judge Donald Mosley's ruling that placing money in a safe-deposit box was not a financial transaction under the Nevada money-laundering statute.
A safe-deposit box at Binion's Horseshoe still is referenced in the indictment that was returned Thursday and unsealed Friday. However, the charges are more narrowly focused on the process by which prosecutors say the money was transported to the box.
Walters, 53, said he is the target of an obsessive prosecutor determined to make his mark with a high-profile conviction.
"I will assure one and all that I have done nothing wrong, and the facts will bear that out," he said.
Deputy State Attorney General David Thompson, who is prosecuting the case, said the decision to seek an indictment was not his alone.
He said the case was investigated by Las Vegas police and noted that his performance is supervised by his superiors in the attorney general's office.
"The decision to prosecute was an institutional one," he said. "Sometimes it happens that when people in law enforcement try to do their jobs, the defendants respond with a barrage of personal attacks. It seems to be increasingly common these days."
Several employees of Walters also are named in the indictment. They are his security chief, Jimmie Hanley, and his computer systems operator, Daniel Pray.
Also named is John Tognino, identified in the indictment as an illegal bookmaker and agent for illegal bookmakers in New York.
The four men are scheduled to be arraigned before District Judge Michael Douglas on Dec. 3.
Because he lives in another state, a warrant was issued for Tognino's arrest. Bail was set at $25,000.
Walters, Hanley and Pray will remain free on their own recognizance throughout the proceedings.
The 11-count indictment charges all four defendants with conspiracy. Walters, Hanley and Pray face additional counts of unlawful transportation of a monetary instrument.
Attorneys for Walters and Hanley were not available for comment Friday.
Attorney JoNell Thomas, who represents Pray, questioned the need for a third indictment in this case at a time when the attorney general's office is seeking permission to hire additional deputies.
"It makes you wonder about the criteria for selecting cases. They put so much effort into this case, and it is difficult to figure out why," Thomas said.
At the heart of the indictment is Sierra Sports, a Walters owned company that prosecutors say was used to place illegal bets with bookmakers primarily in New York.
According to the indictment, Tognino would collect winnings from those bets and cause them to be transported to Hanley in Las Vegas. Hanley then would take the cash to the Binion's safe-deposit box before disbursing the money at the direction of Walters, it alleges.
The indictment states that Pray kept Sierra Sports' business records and knew the money came from an illegal source.
Thomas said her client always believed he was participating in a legitimate operation.
"He never believed that anything about the company was illegal," she said.
Walters is the chairman and chief executive officer of the Walters Group, which owns and operates golf courses across the nation.
He is a member of the board of directors of the United Way of Southern Nevada, as well as the board that oversees the Opportunity Village Foundation.
Walters said he will push for a speedy resolution.
"I will contest this as vigorously as I am capable of contesting it," he said. "I want to get this thing totally resolved.
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