Video Poker Kingpin Gets 4 Years For Gambling
A man who once headed an illegal video poker empire in southwestern Pennsylvania was sentenced to four more years in federal prison Wednesday for violating his probation by placing millions of dollars in sports bets over the phone last year. John "Duffy" Conley, 42, of Pittsburgh, was convicted in 1995 and spent nine years in prison before he was released in January 2004.
Federal prosecutors said at the time that Conley controlled 4,000 gambling machines in western Pennsylvania that netted him as much as $15 million a year. Conley was arrested again in February after an investigation by state police and the Attorney General's office. Authorities said he made more than $3. 9 million in sports bets through contacts in Georgia, offshore casinos and local bookies in one four-week span in November and December. Conley's attorney, Caroline Roberto, argued Wednesday that Conley has a gambling problem and was making the bets for himself.
A counselor testified that Conley started gambling when he was 9 and was a compulsive bettor by age 16. But U. S. District Judge Arthur Schwab agreed with prosecutors who argued that Conley was a bookie who placed the bets with others to even out his books, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported on its Web site. Conley also associated with 17 known felons, prosecutors said.
May 18, 2006
Posted By Guy Akers
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
Previous Page | Internet Gambling | Top Online Casinos | Submit News!