Craig Williams, former MP for Montgomeryshire, has been charged with offenses under the Gambling Act 2005 following a probe by the Gambling Commission. He is due to appear, alongside 14 other defendants, at Westminster Magistrates Court June 13.

Those charged include Laura Saunders, who was dropped as a Conservative election candidate amid an internal investigation into alleged bets placed on the timing of the vote, and her husband Tony Lee, who served as the Conservatives’ director of campaigning.

The watchdog began its investigation in June 2024 after Sunak called a surprise election, a move that is in the gift of the prime minister under the U.K. system.

As it announced the charges, the Gambling Commission said: “The investigation, initiated in June 2024, focused on individuals suspected of using confidential information — specifically advance knowledge of the proposed election date — to gain an unfair advantage in betting markets. 

“Such actions constitute an offence of cheating under Section 42 of the Gambling Act 2005, a criminal offence.”

A separate Metropolitan Police investigation into election bets was dropped last August.

The post Ex-Tory MP charged with betting offences over UK election timing appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.

Following a two-year investigation into illegal gambling activities tied to the Lucchese Crime Family, searches were conducted on April 9, 2025, on four poker clubs located in Totowa, Garfield, and Woodland Park, including two clubs where backroom poker games were hidden behind functioning restaurants; a business in Paterson storing gambling machines; and seven residences of individuals alleged to be managing the gambling activities.

A Prospect Park council member and local business owner – Anand Shah, 42, of Prospect Park, New Jersey – was identified as allegedly managing illegal poker games and an online sportsbook in association with the Lucchese Crime Family. The investigation uncovered additional poker clubs, the involvement of dozens of individuals alleged to have hosted poker games and worked at the poker clubs, and managed bettors on an illegal online sportsbook.

The upper management of the gambling enterprise allegedly oversaw the gambling activities and received a portion of the criminal proceeds. The investigation resulted in the identification of more than $3 million in suspected criminal proceeds. Members of the criminal enterprise used multiple shell corporations and functioning businesses to conceal their illegal gambling proceeds.

The high-level managers of the criminal enterprise who were charged, many of whom are allegedly members of the Lucchese Crime Family, include George Zappola, 65, of Red Bank, New Jersey; Joseph R. “Big Joe” Perna, 56, of Belleville, New Jersey; John Perna, 47, of Little Falls, New Jersey; and Wayne Cross, 75, of Spring Lake, New Jersey. They are charged with first-degree racketeering and second-degree conspiracy to promote gambling and money laundering, among other crimes.

“Romanticized versions of organized crime have been the subject of countless movies and television shows, often set right here in the Garden State,” said Attorney General Platkin. “But the reality isn’t romantic or cinematic. It’s about breaking the laws the rest of us follow and, ultimately, it’s about money, control, and the threat of violence. My office is bringing every resource available to crack down on violent criminals – including organized crime – and will root it out in all of its forms. And that is exactly what we have done.”

“In the complaint we’re announcing today, we allege that members and associates of the Lucchese Crime Family operated illegal card games and sports betting books in northern New Jersey,” said DCJ Director Theresa L. Hilton. “This can lead to other criminal activity, such as money laundering and theft. Two of the defendants are charged with stealing from local retailers in addition to their roles in the gambling operation. These are not so-called ‘victimless’ crimes, and we take seriously our responsibility to root out these illegal enterprises.”

“Criminal enterprises like this pose a serious threat to the safety and well-being of our communities, driving illegal gambling, money laundering, and racketeering operations that value profit over people,” said Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. “Thanks to our detectives’ tireless work and unwavering commitment, this operation was successfully dismantled — sending a strong message that we will not tolerate this kind of criminal activity in New Jersey.”

According to the complaint, the gambling operations included social clubs that housed live poker games and gambling machines, as well as an extensive online sportsbook operated through several websites based outside of the United States. Each poker club was operated by high-level managers that delegated day-to-day operations to managers who were present during poker games.

Managers collected monetary dues, called “rent,” from poker hosts for permitting the games to occur and oversaw employees who worked in the clubs. Poker hosts were responsible for recruiting their own players, supplying food and drink for the games, and financially staking the game. The host, commonly known as the “house,” made a profit off the games because the dealer took a percentage of the monies bet by the players as a profit for the house for each hand played (a “rake”). The dealers were either paid by the hosts or were working off prior gambling debts owed to the hosts of the game. The clubs also housed gambling machines that players could use while waiting for a seat at a live poker game.

The online sportsbook was operated by “agents” — who, before the advent of computerized betting, would have been known as “bookies” – that created accounts on sports gambling websites based in foreign countries. These agents managed “packages” – groups of individual bettors. Sub-agents and agents were responsible for the gambling winnings and losses of bettors in their packages and kicked up a portion of the criminal proceeds to the high-level management of the enterprise.

The post NJ charges 39 people in gambling investigation linked to crime family appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.

Kalshi defeated the Biden-era Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in federal court last year for the right to offer betting on political events such as the presidential election, and has pushed into sports with markets on the Super Bowl, March Madness, and more. Kalshi also partnered with Robinhood on March Madness prediction markets.

Kalshi responded to the onslaught of orders by suing Nevada and New Jersey in federal court. 

U.S. District Court Judge Andrew P. Gordon issued a minute order Tuesday that granted, in part, Kalshi’s motion for a temporary retraining order and preliminary injunction. 

The judge also denied the Nevada Gaming Commission’s counterclaims, which sought an immediate temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction that would have prohibited Kalshi from continuing to offer sports event contracts in Nevada.

A written ruling with more detail will come later, but the decision means Kalshi can continue operating.

The post Kalshi wins lawsuit against Nevada regulator appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.

The Australian subsidiary of the offshore company operating the TAB allegedly failed to gather sufficient information about a New Zealander who deposited nearly $15 million into his sports betting accounts.

The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac) has alleged Entain Australia failed to implement proper checks on the sources of some of its big spenders.

The British bookmaking giant behind Ladbrokes and Neds allegedly failed to cut off a customer who punted more than $1 million in a single year despite knowing an internationally wanted criminal suspected of trafficking drugs had transferred money into his bank account.

Entain has co-operated fully with AUSTRAC throughout its investigation, and in December 2022 commenced a programme of further enhancements to its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (“AML and CTF”) systems and processes.

Stella David, Interim Chief Executive of Entain, commented: “We are taking these allegations extremely seriously and continue to fully co-operate with AUSTRAC.

“We also remain focused on continuing to enhance Entain Australia’s AML and CTF compliance arrangements. We expect these enhancements to be fully implemented by June 2025, in line with the plan communicated to AUSTRAC.

“We are committed to keeping financial crime out of gambling and continue to play our part in supporting a well-regulated and compliant sector for our customers, stakeholders and the wider community.”

The post Austrac says Entain failed to identify and assess risks of player accounts appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.

Four of the cases were ruled on by an independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer (AHO), with the fifth resolved directly between the player and the ITIA.

38-year-old Yannick Thivant, who reached a career-high world singles ranking of 590 in September 2015, was issued a lifetime ban by AHO Professor Richard McLaren, who noted in the written decision that “the facts in this matter require that the most serious sanctions be imposed.”

Thivant, who admitted to fixing 22 matches between 2017 and 2018, including 16 of their own, as part of a French criminal investigation, requested a hearing before the AHO. All charges were upheld, and Thivant was fined $75,000, in addition to €37,400 in restitution. The sanction took effect on 14 February 2025, the date of the written decision.

28-year-old Thomas Brechemier, who reached a career-high world singles ranking of 399 in August 2017, was issued a seven years and six months suspension by AHO Ian Mill KC, after admitting to fixing 11 matches between 2017 and 2018. Brechemier was also fined $40,000, of which $27,500 is suspended.

The sanction took effect on 12 February 2025, the date of the written decision, and Brechemier’s suspension will end on 11 August 2032.

29-year-old Gabriel Petit, who reached a career-high world singles ranking of 450 in December 2018, was issued a six years and six months suspension by AHO Charles Hollander KC, alongside a fine of $35,000, after Petit failed to respond to the ITIA’s charges.

In failing to engage with the process, which included formal serving of documents at their registered address, Petit effectively waived their right to a hearing and accepted liability for fixing seven matches between 2017 and 2018. The sanction took effect on 21 March 2025, the date of the written decision, and Petit’s suspension will end on 20 September 2031.

29-year-old Thomas Setodji, who reached a career-high world singles ranking of 794 in July 2024, has been suspended for 10 years and fined $20,000, in addition to €5,500 restitution, after being found liable for fixing three matches in 2017 and failing to report a corrupt approach in 2018. The sanction took effect on 1 April 2025, the date of the written decision, and the player’s suspension will end on 31 March 2035.

28-year-old Hugo Daubias, who reached a career-high world singles ranking of 972 in September 2017, has been suspended for two years and fined $15,000 after admitting as part of an ITIA investigation to fixing two matches in 2017. The sanction took effect on 21 March 2025, as Daubias did not appeal the notice of charge, and the player’s suspension will end on 20 March 2027.

During their suspensions, the players are prohibited from playing in, coaching at, or attending any tennis event authorised or sanctioned by the members of the ITIA (ATP, ITF, WTA, Tennis Australia, Fédération Française de Tennis, Wimbledon and USTA) or any national association.  

The ITIA is an independent body established by its tennis members to promote, encourage, enhance, and safeguard the integrity of their professional tennis events.   

The post Five tennis players sanctioned for match-fixing breaches appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.

On March 14, 2025, Aristocrat filed a second amended complaint with the District Court of Nevada, adding a trade secret misappropriation claim against Jewel of the Dragon. The initial claims concerning Jewel of the Dragon did not include a claim for trade secret misappropriation. We intend to respond to the second amended complaint by April 11, 2025.

In the latest complaint, Aristocrat has also raised new issues, which we intend to vigorously defend against.

First, Aristocrat asserts that replacement games for Dragon Train, including Dragon Train Grand Central, a social game we have released, would “reap the benefits” of trade secret misappropriation even if none of the claimed trade secrets are used in such games.

There are many elements of Dragon Train that made it successful and that are not contested by Aristocrat. We have structured development of new games to solve the issue raised by Emma Charles’ use of certain math in the design of Dragon Train.

We have been and will continue to be transparent with the courts and Aristocrat on the process to ensure that new games do not contain any of Aristocrat’s claimed trade secrets or confidential information. We followed that process with our new social game, Dragon Train Grand Central. We provided the math to Aristocrat in advance of the launch of the game.

Aristocrat has made no claim with respect to the Dragon Train Grand Central math, and we are confident the same will be true for our Dragon Train replacement land-based game that is in development.
Second, Aristocrat’s complaint also refers to emails sent by Emma Charles, the game designer of Dragon Train, to other team members at L&W that were provided to Aristocrat as part of the discovery process.

We remain steadfast in our commitment to continued R&D investment to further develop our catalog of proven, evergreen franchises. The broad uplift in game performance we’ve experienced across our portfolio is a testament to the quality of the talent and culture in our organization. We are extremely proud to have a robust and diversified portfolio of the best products in the market that gives us a competitive advantage not tied to any one game or franchise. We are grateful to our customers and stakeholders for their unwavering support as we continue to execute to strategy.

Aristocrat originally made claims with respect to two Light &Wonder games in its complaint filed on February 26, 2024, a trade secret misappropriation claim on Dragon Train and trade dress, copyright infringement and related claims on Jewel of the Dragon. In its first amended complaint filed in July 2024, Aristocrat added references to trade dress issues relating to Dragon Unleashed Link.

The post Light & Wonder withdraws second slot title following Aristocrat legal action appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.

“First, Defendants get Baltimoreans in the door with the promise of ‘bonus bets,’ or other similarly named promotions, designed to induce Baltimoreans to bet,” said the suit filed in Baltimore City Circuit Court by the city solicitor on behalf of Mayor Brandon Scott and the City Council.

The bonuses are often loaded with fine print containing “complex terms and conditions,” the suit said.

The sportsbooks’ goal is to use inducements to drive people to the site. “Some get hooked, and that’s the point,” the suit said. FanDuel was also named in the suite.

The lawsuit alleges DraftKings and FanDuel are using a “two-pronged scheme to harm Baltimoreans.” It alleges the scheme begins with using “misleading promotions” like “bonus bets.” 

The suit alleges the companies “leverage the vast array of data they have about their users … to identify those who suffer from gambling disorder, and then extract what they can from them.”

The post Baltimore sues DraftKings alleging misleading tactics appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.

Mizuhara was initially ordered to start his 57-month prison sentence by March 24. His attorney, Michael G. Freedman, filed a request to move his surrender date on March 12. That request, which the judge granted, remains under court seal.

Last Wednesday, federal prosecutors asked the judge to unseal the document containing the new surrender date. The document became available to the public Monday.

Freedman declined ESPN’s request for comment, as did the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California.

Mizuhara was sentenced to nearly five years in prison in February for stealing about $17 million from Ohtani in an attempt to pay off approximately $40 million in gambling debts to an illegal bookmaker.

Mizuhara was sentenced to nearly five years in prison in February for stealing about $17 million from Ohtani. The Dodgers fired Mizuhara in March 2024 after an ESPN investigation revealed that he had sent millions in wire transfers from Ohtani’s account to an illegal bookmaker. 

The post Ippei Mizuhara’s surrender date pushed back, government says appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.

According to Kalshi, as a federally regulated derivatives exchanges the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission has the ultimate power to decide what types of wagers it can and can’t offer to customers. However, Nevada’s regulators say Kalshi’s contracts violate state rules for sports pools, which are required to be licensed, inspected and taxed.

Kalshi is overseen by the CFTC. Historically, in the US, states have regulated the gaming industry.

Earlier this month, the head of the Nevada Gaming Control Board threatened penalties if Kalshi offered contracts that sought to “circumvent Nevada’s right to regulate gaming activity within its borders.”

In its lawsuit on Friday, Kalshi said it had failed to reach an agreement with Nevada authorities on the legality of its event contracts. Kalshi asked the court to recognize that Nevada can’t enforce its gambling laws against the firm because its federally regulated by the CFTC.

“Nevada’s attempt to regulate Kalshi intrudes upon the federal regulatory framework that Congress established for regulating futures derivatives on designated exchanges,” Kalshi’s lawyers say in the suit.

Neither the Nevada Gaming Control Board nor the Nevada Gaming Commission immediately responded to requests for comment sent outside of normal business hours late Friday.

Kalshi’s derivative contracts let people wager on all sorts of events, from Oscar winners to the interest rate decisions by the Federal Reserve Board. Kalshi began offering bets on sports markets in January.

The post Kalshi files lawsuits against gaming regulators appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.

The new complaint alleges that the lawsuit is about “patently illegal gambling software being distributed to mobile phones, desktop computers and other personal electronic devices of individuals throughout New Jersey, New York and beyond, by an unlawful enterprise that includes two of the most successful companies in the world.” This complaint does not name any of the social casino games operators.

Rather, it alleges that the named defendants “willingly assist, promote and profit from” allegedly illegal gambling by: (1) offering users access to the apps through their app stores; (2) taking a substantial percentage of consumer purchases of Game Coins, Sweeps Coins and other transactions within the apps; (3) processing allegedly illicit transactions between consumers and the Sweepstakes Casinos using their proprietary payment systems; and (4) by using targeted advertising to allegedly “shepherd the most vulnerable customers to the Sweepstakes Casinos’ websites and apps” facilitating an allegedly unlawful gambling enterprise.

The legal claims are made under the NJ gambling loss recovery statute, the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, Unjust Enrichment, New York’s gaming loss recovery statute, NY consumer protection laws, and the RICO laws.

The post Apple named in latest sweepstakes lawsuit appeared first on 5 Star iGaming Media.