Monthly Archives: April 2017

The Irish gambling company Paddy Power is looking for a head of Trump betting to manage a surge in wagers related to the U.S. president.

At Paddy Power, you can bet on whether Obamacare will survive President Trump's first term. You can take 500-to-1 odds and bet that Trump will paint the White House gold. You can even bet on whether an American state will try to secede.

British and Irish betting houses accepted about 230 million ($286 million) in bets related to the U.S. election last year, making it the biggest non-sports event in industry history.

When Trump won, Paddy Power was burned badly. The company, which generally focuses on sports, took more than 15,000 election bets last year and lost a total of $5 million on the upset.

The election is over, but tens of thousands of dollars are still being wagered on the young administration, said Lee Price, a Paddy Power spokesman. Interest in Trump-related bets is about 50 times what it was when Barack Obama moved into the White House.

Paddy Power wants someone to manage its online hub for Trump gambling and come up with creative bets. The company is already offering bets on how long members of Trump's Cabinet will serve, plus some more personal presidential wagers.

"The job is to be an expert in all things Trump," said Paddy Power representative, Lee Price. "In the spirit of Donald Trump's presidency, we're saying no experience required."

The job is full time -- three months for now, with a possible extension.

"If demand continues, so will the role," Price said. "We're sure Trump will keep us busy."

The company listed the job in its online Careers section in March but recently began placing ads in the classified sections of two popular British newspapers to drum up interest.

Price said the company has received hundreds of applications but many were too "jokey" and the firm wanted more serious candidates. Paddy Power managers plan to start interviews by the end of next week.

CNNMoney (London) First published April 7, 2017: 10:06 AM ET

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Help wanted: Gambling firm seeks a Trump expert - CNNMoney

The Texas Legislature is considering several bills that would legitimize daily fantasy sports gambling in Texas as legal, skill-based games in direct contradiction of an opinion issued by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton last year that deemed the practice to be illegal gambling.

The members of Stop Daily Fantasy Gambling agree with Paxton. We will aggressively oppose all efforts to promote the unlicensed and unregulated daily fantasy sports gambling industry in Texas.

Online daily fantasy sports gambling has its roots in the casual office pools and rotisserie-style fantasy sports leagues long played among friends for fun and bragging rights. But the games the daily fantasy gambling operators want legislators to consider are quite a different animal. They are operated online by a relatively new, largely unregulated corporate industry that has been plagued by scandal in other states.

In an online daily fantasy sports contest, a bettor attempts to win money by simulating sports team ownership or management. After paying an entry fee wager to the website, they create their team from a menu of professional or amateur athletes, and then compile points based on the statistical performances of individual players. As with other forms of gambling, fantasy sports bettors can wager every day on multiple contests such as baseball, basketball, football, hockey or soccer. Money is awarded to the bettors who assembled the top teams in the online games. Losers forfeit their entry fees. The website operator profits by taking a cut of the total proceeds.

All this occurs in an environment where high-volume players using computer scripts and special software submit thousands of lineups at once, taking unfair advantage of new players and those with less experience. So much for friendly games among neighbors and friends; this is a cutthroat business where serious bettors stand to win big and losers often never have a chance. There are billions of dollars at stake, and relying on these companies, which stand to gain immense profits from these wagers, to self-regulate is not the responsible policy approach.

Many states across the nation are struggling with the question of whether and how to allow online daily fantasy sports gambling amid an aggressive legislative push by the big companies that run the games. Within the past few weeks, the Kentucky Legislature gave a thumbs-down to a bill seeking to re-establish a legal footing for paid-entry fantasy sports. Last year, similar legislation failed in Illinois after it was found that a major fantasy sports company had tried to exert inappropriate influence on the legislative process. Indeed, scandals linked to companies operating these games and their activities have surfaced in a number of states, including Rhode Island, Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, New York, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada and Washington state.

In my own home state of Texas, the attorney general has already clarified existing state law and deemed daily fantasy sports gambling to be illegal. Yet major gambling industry companies like FanDuel and DraftKings are trying to persuade legislators to give them special treatment, allowing them to circumvent the gambling laws of the state.

The Texas Legislature and other legislatures around the country have an obligation to protect citizens from being exploited by an industry that purports to be a sporting event or game of skill but in fact is a new virtual form of gambling with betting identical to online poker and online horse races.

Legislators must say no to any legislation that would allow for a loophole to the legalization of daily fantasy sports gambling.

Grimes is executive director of Stop Daily Fantasy Gambling, a 501(c)4 nonprofit organization dedicated to stopping the proliferation of illegal gambling.

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Commentary: Legislators must say no to daily fantasy sports gambling - MyStatesman.com

'Serious cash': A glimpse into Phil Mickelson's gambling world New York Post Mickelson is tangentially involved in the high-profile fraud case against Las Vegas gambler Billy Walters, currently taking place in US District Court in Manhattan. Mickelson was not charged in the case, nor will he be a witness, but was forced to pay ... and more »

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'Serious cash': A glimpse into Phil Mickelson's gambling world - New York Post

Phil Mickelson's gambling pal convicted in insider trading scheme New York Post Famed Las Vegas sports gambler William Billy Walters was convicted on Friday of charges that he made more than $40 million through an insider trading scheme that prosecutors said involved a stock tip to star professional golfer Phil Mickelson ...

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Phil Mickelson's gambling pal convicted in insider trading scheme - New York Post

A proposal for a third video gambling cafe in Oswego has some village officials concerned.

"I don't want Oswego to be known for video gambling," Oswego Trustee Joe West said.

A representative of Hana's Hospitality, which operates a gambling cafe in Bradley and has plans to open another location in Park Forest, approached village trustees recently with a proposal for an Oswego location.

Fadi Mohammed said the business is interested in opening a 1,200-square-foot video gambling cafe in the Ogden Center strip mall near Routes 34 and 30 on the village's east side.

The village has two other video gambling cafes. Stella's Place opened earlier this year in the Townes Crossing shopping center at Route 30 and Douglas Road. PD's Place opened in the Mason Square shopping center at Route 34 and Douglas Road in 2015.

Nine other businesses in Oswego, which includes restaurants and bars as well as one fraternal organization and a club, have video gambling as a part of their operations.

Mohammed said the concept for the proposed new venue is to have a video gambling cafe with a New York deli style menu. Bradley-based Hana's Hospitality owns New York City Deli in Bourbonnais.

Oswego Village President Gail Johnson said the village is in the process of having a "philosophical" discussion of how many gambling cafes would be too many.

"There is a tipping point," she said.

However, Johnson said given the proposed location, she might be in favor of the proposal.

West said he thought the village was getting away from the original intent of video gambling, which was to help fraternal organizations and small eateries generate revenue and remain competitive with establishments in other communities.

Trustee Karin McCarthy-Lange said she would not be in favor of another video gambling cafe in the village.

Trustee Pam Parr said the proposed cafe would be in a shopping center in a low-profile area and in a retail space that has been vacant for a couple of years.

"I am leaning on supporting it because of this location and the fact that it would have a deli. If it would have been in any other location, I probably would not have been in favor of it," Parr said.

Trustees Ryan Kauffman, Judy Sollinger and Luis Perez said they would be in favor.

"We're talking about three (gambling cafes in Oswego) and not 30," Kauffman said.

"How can we say yes to one and no to another? I would prefer to say no to all of them," McCarthy-Lange said.

Johnson said she was in favor of the proposal solely based on the location.

"As the next petitioner comes before us we will struggle again with the question. If it was in a different (commercial) strip, my answer would have been very different," she said.

The village a couple of years ago changed the rules to require owners get final Village Board approval for video gambling parlors. The village has received nine other inquires from businesses interested in opening a video gambling parlor in Oswego, village officials said.

The new proposal will go back to the Village Board with detailed plans for the interior space and facade.

Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News

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Oswego debates plan for new video gambling cafe - Chicago Tribune

A care home boss who conned an elderly resident out of 9,000 to feed her 1,000-a-month gambling addiction has narrowly avoided a prison sentence.

Sharon Smith, 52, of Dellohay Park in Saltash, appeared at Truro Crown Court today to be sentenced after being found guilty after a trial of one count of fraud.

She was convicted of abusing her position as manager at Rowan House care home by taking resident Robert Berridge, now 68, to a local Lloyd's bank branch on numerous occasions between December 2014 and September 2015 and instructing him to withdraw cash that she said would go towards top up fees for his care.

During the trial prosecutor Philip Lee, for the CPS, revealed Mr Berridge already had direct debits set up which covered his care fees other than a small amount left in arrears due to a standing order alteration.

Read more: Newquay man jailed after terrifying staff during attempted store smash-and-grab

Smith was sentenced at Truro Crown Court

During the sentencing hearing Mr Lee referred to Mr Berridge's victim personal statement which stated that the offending had resulted in a deterioration of his physical and mental health.

The statement also described a "betrayal of trust" that affected Mr Berridge very badly and Mr Lee then described how Smith's actions resulted in suspicion falling on other innocent members of staff at Rowan House.

Smith first came under the spotlight when local Lloyds Bank staff became concerned because she was taking residents of the home into the branch to withdraw cash.

An investigation by officers from the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU) found Smith was using her position at the care home to take advantage of a resident by getting him to withdraw money from his account for her own benefit.

Between November 2014 and October 2015 9,007 was withdrawn from the resident's bank account.

After she was charged, Smith breached her bail conditions by returning to the care home and depositing three envelopes of money with the resident's name on into the safe, in an attempt to suggest the money had always been in the safe.

Defending Smith, Jason Beal said that she was of "previous unblemished character".

"She worked her way up from the bottom, first starting as a care worker when she left school at 16.

Read more: Bodyshamer Jowan Townsend-Trahair exposed for vile Facebook rant at another Cornwall woman

"People liked her and before what the jury found to be a period of criminal activity she went above and beyond the managerial requirements at the home."

Mr Beal also said that Smith currently acts as a carer for her step-father, who is in bad health, looking after him and making him meals.

Sentencing Smith, Recorder Andrew Maitland, said: "In the space of about a year you effectively stole 9,000 from Robert Berridge by abusing your position of manager at Rowan House.

"He's now 68 and both his physical and mental health are fail. By any stretch of the imagination he was a very vulnerable victim.

"The reason you committed this appalling breach of trust was to feed your own gambling addiction on which you spent 34,000 either directly or on loans to feed your habit.

"It is quite clear to me that there does not exist one iota of remorse from you about your actions. Robert Berridge trusted you and felt you were honest and you betrayed that trust, it is solely your actions which have caused such distress."

Recorder Maitland also expressed his reservations that Smith does not accept the true extent of her gambling addiction.

Read more: Three men jailed for attempting to ship more than 80 million of cocaine into Cornwall

Nonetheless he handed her a two-year prison sentence, suspended for two years, along with 200 hours of unpaid work and a rehab activity requirement of 15 days to address the gambling addiction.

DC Fiona Roope, who investigated the case for the DCPCU, said: "Sharon Smith exploited the trust of her employers and, most importantly, a vulnerable resident of the care home where she worked who now faces financial hardship. The police will take swift action to protect vulnerable victims and the staff at Lloyd's Bank should be commended for spotting and reporting her behaviour.

"I would remind anyone thinking of committing a similar crime that there are very real consequences in doing so and police and banks will do all they can to ensure you are brought to justice."

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Saltash care boss and 1,000-a-month gambling addict Sharon ... - Cornwall Live