California Man Pleads Guilty to Operating an Illegal Gambling Business, Tax Evasion, and Money Laundering

A California man pleaded guilty today to operating an illegal gambling business, tax evasion, and money laundering.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Christopher Scott King, of Santa Monica, California, operated an illegal bookmaking business. Working out of Los Angeles County, King used a sports betting website based in Costa Rica to facilitate bettors wagering on sporting events in violation of both California state and federal law.

King also evaded his taxes. Between 2019 and 2022, King concealed $13,586,493 of income from the IRS by, among other things, not reporting all of his income on his tax returns. On his 2022 income tax return, for example, King reported $143,258 in taxable income, but, in reality, he earned more than $5 million in income that year.

King laundered his money by channeling it through real estate development projects and gold. King also used money he received from his illegal gambling business to fund his brokerage and financial accounts. As part of his plea agreement, King has agreed to pay $10 million in a personal money judgment of forfeiture at the time of sentencing.

In total, King caused a tax loss to the IRS of $3,804,218.

King is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 9 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for each count of tax evasion, operating an illegal gambling operation, and accepting a financial instrument for unlawful internet gambling, and 10 years in prison for money laundering. He also faces a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karen E. Kelly of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Bilal A. Essayli for the Central District of California made the announcement.

IRS Criminal Investigation’s International Tax and Financial Crimes group and Homeland Security Investigations are investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys John C. Gerardi and Charles A. O’Reilly of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.