April 2, 2009 (CAP Newswire) — The Associated Press is reporting that BetOnSports' former CEO David Carruthers has pleaded guilty to federal racketeering and conspiracy charges in the U.S., and is now expected to be sentenced to a thirty-three month prison term.
Per the AP article, the plea was entered yesterday in the U.S. District Court in St. Louis, Missouri. The reportedly brief prison sentence was engineered as part of a deal in which Carruthers will cooperate with prosecutors in the case against BetOnSports founder Gary Kaplan, and six other figures involved in the case.
Carruthers is a United Kingdom resident, and his prosecution for violation of controversial U.S. laws has been a source of antagonism for some time (and is reportedly among the factors in the EU’s WTO complaints against the United States).
The article also states that, according to U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway, roughly 1,000 people lost a total of more than $16 million when BetOnSports closed its doors three years ago..
Click here to read the Associated Press coverage.