Betting expert pleads guilty in illegal gambling scheme
A Las Vegas man who marketed an online wagering system to customers across the country has pleaded guilty in federal court to running an illegal gambling operation and hiding more than $1.5 million from the IRS.
Tony Chau, 31, operated the now-closed sportsbettingchamp.com website with help from offshore sports books in Costa Rica and Panama, which do not have Nevada licenses, according to a plea agreement unsealed Thursday.
Chau established his customer base through sale of his wagering system, and then referred the customers to the offshore sports books to set up betting accounts, the plea agreement states.
He received a commission from the sports books on the gambling losses of the customers, according to the plea agreement.
Chau, who is free on his own recognizance, pleaded guilty Wednesday to three charges: conducting an illegal gambling business, money laundering and making a false statement on a tax return. He is to be sentenced Aug. 5 before U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware.
Chau wired money he received from the sports books to a third-party bank account “with the intent to promote the carrying on of the illegal gambling business and to conceal and disguise the nature, location, source, ownership and control of the proceeds,” the plea agreement says.
The IRS investigation revealed that Chau failed to report the $1.5 million he earned off the backs of his customers from the offshore sports books on his tax returns between 2008 and 2011. The concealment kept the IRS from collecting $567,571 in taxes, the plea agreement states.
Chau has agreed to pay the money to the IRS in restitution as part of his deal. The government also is seeking the forfeiture of $1.4 million in cash and property.
The agreement says Chau started the illegal gambling business in 2007, while he lived in Massachusetts, and kept it going in 2008 after he moved to Las Vegas.
Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135. Find him on Twitter: @JGermanRJ
