This from the Associated Press:
NEW YORK (AP) – It was the high-tech key to a massive, illegal gambling kingdom: a laptop computer that authorities say was owned by a professional poker player named James Giordano.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com
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></o>
Giordano, who rarely let the computer out of his sight, unknowingly took a gamble earlier this year by leaving it behind while attending a wedding, police said Wednesday.<o></o>
But in the three hours he and his wife were away from their Long Island hotel room, New York Police Department investigators armed with a search warrant and computer expertise sneaked in, found the laptop on a desk and made a digital copy of the hard drive before the couple returned.<o></o>
The covert operation on June 15 helped unlock a sophisticated billion-dollar-a-year gambling scheme that rivaled casino sports books, authorities said at a news conference announcing charges against Giordano and 26 other defendants.<o></o>
Giordano, 52, was arrested early Wednesday by FBI agents who had to scale the walls of his fortess-like compound in Pine Crest, Fla. Also arrested at his Long Island home in Seaford, N.Y., was Frank Falzarano, identified by prosecutors as a scout for the Washington Nationals.<o></o>
“This is the largest illegal gambling operation we have ever encountered,” said Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly. “It rivals casinos for the amount of betting.”<o></o>
Falzarano, 52, allegedly was a top earner in a network of 2,000 bookies who took more than $3.3 billion in cash wagers since 2004 from tens of thousands of customers nationwide.<o></o>
Though the gambling ring relied on a Web site, it was different from the online betting operations targeted by recent federal legislation, said Deputy Inspector Brian O’Neill, who supervised the investigation.<o></o>
The scheme involved placing sports bets through bookies, who would assign bettors a secret code to track their wagers and monitor point spreads and results through the restricted Web site. The bets were taken on all kinds of sports, including football, baseball, basketball, hockey, car racing and golf.<o></o>
The defendants allegedly laundered and stashed away “untold millions of dollars” using shell corporations and bank accounts in Central America, the Caribbean, Switzerland, Hong Kong and elsewhere, said Queens District Attorney Richard Brown. The prosecutor called the $500 million asset forfeiture case “among the largest such cases ever filed.”<o></o>
A total of 27 people in New York, New Jersey, Florida and Nevada were charged with enterprise corruption, money laundering, promoting gambling and other counts. Giordano had waived extradition in Florida and was expected to be arraigned next week; prosecutors did not have the name of his lawyer.<o></o>
Falzarano, who was ordered held on $500,000 bail after pleading not guilty, “looks forward to defending himself in court,” said defense attorney Peter Tomao.<o></o>
Charges also were brought against three companies that allegedly helped Giordano develop and secure the Web site: Primary Development Inc. of Farmingdale, N.Y., Prolexic Technologies Inc. of Hollywood, Fla., and Digital Networks, S.A., Inc. of Davie, Fla.<o></o>
Search warrants executed in several locations resulted in the seizure of gambling records, computers and hundreds of millions of dollars in property, some of it stashed in a secret room concealed by a bookshelf in the Manhattan home of one of the suspects.<o></o>
The property includes four Manhattan condominiums, millions of dollars in cash, tens of thousands of dollars worth of casino chips from the Bellagio casino in Las Vegas, jewelry, gold coins, and a football signed by the 1969 New York Jets following their Super Bowl victory. Also seized was original artwork by Peter Max and Salvador Dali.<o></o>
Police launched an investigation last year after receiving a tip from a suspect in a separate organized crime probe. Over the next several months, detectives broke the code for the Web site and began electronic surveillance of the suspects.<o></o>
Giordano won a Texas Hold ’em tournament at the Bellagio worth nearly $100,000 earlier this year.<o></o>
–––<o></o>
Associated Press Writer Ula Ilnytzky contributed to this report.<o></o>
NEW YORK (AP) – It was the high-tech key to a massive, illegal gambling kingdom: a laptop computer that authorities say was owned by a professional poker player named James Giordano.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com
fficeffice" /><o></o>Giordano, who rarely let the computer out of his sight, unknowingly took a gamble earlier this year by leaving it behind while attending a wedding, police said Wednesday.<o
></o>But in the three hours he and his wife were away from their Long Island hotel room, New York Police Department investigators armed with a search warrant and computer expertise sneaked in, found the laptop on a desk and made a digital copy of the hard drive before the couple returned.<o
></o>The covert operation on June 15 helped unlock a sophisticated billion-dollar-a-year gambling scheme that rivaled casino sports books, authorities said at a news conference announcing charges against Giordano and 26 other defendants.<o
></o>Giordano, 52, was arrested early Wednesday by FBI agents who had to scale the walls of his fortess-like compound in Pine Crest, Fla. Also arrested at his Long Island home in Seaford, N.Y., was Frank Falzarano, identified by prosecutors as a scout for the Washington Nationals.<o
></o>“This is the largest illegal gambling operation we have ever encountered,” said Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly. “It rivals casinos for the amount of betting.”<o
></o>Falzarano, 52, allegedly was a top earner in a network of 2,000 bookies who took more than $3.3 billion in cash wagers since 2004 from tens of thousands of customers nationwide.<o
></o>Though the gambling ring relied on a Web site, it was different from the online betting operations targeted by recent federal legislation, said Deputy Inspector Brian O’Neill, who supervised the investigation.<o
></o>The scheme involved placing sports bets through bookies, who would assign bettors a secret code to track their wagers and monitor point spreads and results through the restricted Web site. The bets were taken on all kinds of sports, including football, baseball, basketball, hockey, car racing and golf.<o
></o>The defendants allegedly laundered and stashed away “untold millions of dollars” using shell corporations and bank accounts in Central America, the Caribbean, Switzerland, Hong Kong and elsewhere, said Queens District Attorney Richard Brown. The prosecutor called the $500 million asset forfeiture case “among the largest such cases ever filed.”<o
></o>A total of 27 people in New York, New Jersey, Florida and Nevada were charged with enterprise corruption, money laundering, promoting gambling and other counts. Giordano had waived extradition in Florida and was expected to be arraigned next week; prosecutors did not have the name of his lawyer.<o
></o>Falzarano, who was ordered held on $500,000 bail after pleading not guilty, “looks forward to defending himself in court,” said defense attorney Peter Tomao.<o
></o>Charges also were brought against three companies that allegedly helped Giordano develop and secure the Web site: Primary Development Inc. of Farmingdale, N.Y., Prolexic Technologies Inc. of Hollywood, Fla., and Digital Networks, S.A., Inc. of Davie, Fla.<o
></o>Search warrants executed in several locations resulted in the seizure of gambling records, computers and hundreds of millions of dollars in property, some of it stashed in a secret room concealed by a bookshelf in the Manhattan home of one of the suspects.<o
></o>The property includes four Manhattan condominiums, millions of dollars in cash, tens of thousands of dollars worth of casino chips from the Bellagio casino in Las Vegas, jewelry, gold coins, and a football signed by the 1969 New York Jets following their Super Bowl victory. Also seized was original artwork by Peter Max and Salvador Dali.<o
></o>Police launched an investigation last year after receiving a tip from a suspect in a separate organized crime probe. Over the next several months, detectives broke the code for the Web site and began electronic surveillance of the suspects.<o
></o>Giordano won a Texas Hold ’em tournament at the Bellagio worth nearly $100,000 earlier this year.<o
></o>–––<o
></o>Associated Press Writer Ula Ilnytzky contributed to this report.<o
></o>
