QUESTIONS REMAIN ABOUT BUSTED BOOKIE OPERATION
Wednesday, July 29th, 2009Jeffrey and Michael Jelinsky are scheduled to turn themselves in to authorities and report to jail by noon Friday and the U.S. Attorney’s office in Las Vegas has officially closed the case against them after guilty pleas earlier this year in a case involving bookmaking, money laundering and running an illegal gambling operation, much of it out of the Palms Casino and Poker Palace Casino in Las Vegas. The operation involved millions of dollars of illegal bets made on horse racing that, according to the plea agreement, were either booked by the brothers or laid off at the casino racebooks, offshore bookmakers or through the since-closed rebate shop IRG, which was owned by the publicly traded company Youbet.com.
Jeffrey Jelinsky was sentenced to 21 months in prison and Michael Jelinsky 15 months. (Click to see the sentencing forfeitures for Michael Jelinsky and Jeffrey Jelinsky and here for a plea agreement.)
Though the case against the Jelinsky brothers is completed, some questions remain.
Who were the unindicted co-conspirators and customers of this large operation (the U.S. attorney said they lived in Nevada, California, Texas, New Jersey, Colorado, Connecticut and Florida)? Were any of the customers licensed horse owners or trainers? Has racing’s top cop, Frank Fabian, head of the Thoroughbred Racing Protective Bureau, or individual state racing commissions fulfilled their responsibilities and checked with federal prosecutors to see if any licensed participants in horse racing were involved as associates or customers of Jeffrey and Michael Jelinsky?
Fabian did not return a phone call from the Paulick Report inquiring about the Jelinsky matter.
Federal wiretaps were involved in this case, and the feds almost certainly have names and numbers of the players. Incidentally, neither the Palms Hotel and Casino nor the Poker Palace Casino were said to have done anything wrong, according to the documents from the case. (UPDATE: A Paulick Report reader points out in a comment below that Poker Palace was fined $250,000 for failing to properly manage its employees, some of whom permitted an illegal bookmaking operation to lay off some bets and receive prohibited rebates in return for their action. Click here for details on the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s sanctions.)
Why does it matter who may have been betting through an illegal bookmaker?
For starters, money bet with bookmakers on horseracing doesn’t go into the pari-mutuel pools. That means these illegal bets that otherwise might have gone through the mutuel pools are stealing revenue from racetracks and horsemen. Second, knowingly associating with bookmakers is a serious matter that, at least in some states, can disqualify someone from a racing license as owner or trainer. (In California, for example, Rule No. 1902 reads: “No licensee shall engage in any conduct prohibited by this Division nor shall any licensee engage in any conduct which by its nature is detrimental to the best interests of horse racing including, but not limited to: (a) knowing association with any known bookmaker, known tout, or known felon.”
The federal government and the casinos in Las Vegas take this kind of thing seriously. I hope the TRPB and racing commissions do, too.
Copyright © 2009, The Paulick Report
Savvy businesses recognize value. Advertise in the Paulick Report.
Support the Paulick Report. Make a donation today.
Sign up for our Email Flashes to get the latest news, analysis and commentary from Ray Paulick