bigboydan
08-13-2003, 10:00 AM
6 Faces Charges For Operating Illegal Lottery
Illegal Lottery Offered Bigger Payoffs, Extended Credit
POSTED: 7:24 a.m. EDT August 13, 2003
CLEVELAND -- A federal grand jury has charged six people with running a multi-million dollar gambling operation in northeast Ohio based on the Ohio Lottery's Pick 3 game.
The illegal lottery offered bigger payoffs and extended credit, federal agents said.
The grand jury returned the indictment Tuesday against the alleged ringleader, Virgil Ogletree, 81, of suburban Beachwood, and five of his friends. All were charged with running an illegal gambling business, while Ogletree and two others also were charged with tax violations.
Authorities said the six accepted hundreds of bets a day from numbers runners in Cleveland.
The operation used the same winning numbers as the Ohio Lottery's Pick 3 game, but paid up to $750 for a winning $1 bet, compared to $500 from the lottery, investigators said.
And unlike the lottery, the alleged betting ring took wagers on credit.
In the past, Ogletree has claimed that the Internal Revenue Service has hounded him. He has been convicted of gambling-related tax evasion, and the IRS put back-tax liens on tens of thousands of dollars worth of his possessions and raided his home and businesses.
Ogletree's attorney, John McCaffrey, said he "intends to vigorously defend against the allegations in the indictment."
Authorities described Ogletree as flamboyant.
"He was extremely big in numbers, and he has been around forever," said Bill Riedthaler, a former Cleveland police sergeant who tracked Ogletree for years. "His problem is that he never paid attention to details, like his taxes."
In court documents, the IRS said the group was aided by several associates who hedged bets, accepted wagers and collected debts. Two years ago, the IRS estimated that the game earned about $10 million a year, but authorities would not disclose a current estimate.
The charges end a four-year investigation by the IRS and FBI that focused on illegal lotteries in Cleveland. Two years ago, agents seized 18 fax machines, $115,000 and boxloads of records.
A sworn statement from IRS Agent Thomas Himes said employees of the ring received scores of calls each night just between 6:30 and 7:20 p.m., just before the lottery's evening drawing. They also took in hundreds of bets right before the Ohio Lottery's midday drawing.
Ogletree wanted computers to sort out the information because bets were coming in so quickly, according to the affidavit.
Illegal Lottery Offered Bigger Payoffs, Extended Credit
POSTED: 7:24 a.m. EDT August 13, 2003
CLEVELAND -- A federal grand jury has charged six people with running a multi-million dollar gambling operation in northeast Ohio based on the Ohio Lottery's Pick 3 game.
The illegal lottery offered bigger payoffs and extended credit, federal agents said.
The grand jury returned the indictment Tuesday against the alleged ringleader, Virgil Ogletree, 81, of suburban Beachwood, and five of his friends. All were charged with running an illegal gambling business, while Ogletree and two others also were charged with tax violations.
Authorities said the six accepted hundreds of bets a day from numbers runners in Cleveland.
The operation used the same winning numbers as the Ohio Lottery's Pick 3 game, but paid up to $750 for a winning $1 bet, compared to $500 from the lottery, investigators said.
And unlike the lottery, the alleged betting ring took wagers on credit.
In the past, Ogletree has claimed that the Internal Revenue Service has hounded him. He has been convicted of gambling-related tax evasion, and the IRS put back-tax liens on tens of thousands of dollars worth of his possessions and raided his home and businesses.
Ogletree's attorney, John McCaffrey, said he "intends to vigorously defend against the allegations in the indictment."
Authorities described Ogletree as flamboyant.
"He was extremely big in numbers, and he has been around forever," said Bill Riedthaler, a former Cleveland police sergeant who tracked Ogletree for years. "His problem is that he never paid attention to details, like his taxes."
In court documents, the IRS said the group was aided by several associates who hedged bets, accepted wagers and collected debts. Two years ago, the IRS estimated that the game earned about $10 million a year, but authorities would not disclose a current estimate.
The charges end a four-year investigation by the IRS and FBI that focused on illegal lotteries in Cleveland. Two years ago, agents seized 18 fax machines, $115,000 and boxloads of records.
A sworn statement from IRS Agent Thomas Himes said employees of the ring received scores of calls each night just between 6:30 and 7:20 p.m., just before the lottery's evening drawing. They also took in hundreds of bets right before the Ohio Lottery's midday drawing.
Ogletree wanted computers to sort out the information because bets were coming in so quickly, according to the affidavit.