Isn't chaos fun? While everyone and their brothers try to sort out this
Caribbean sportsbook fiasco, IGN has a few nuts and bolts for you to chew on. Following is a copy of all the complaints filed by the US Government. So, without further ado, lets have a look at these
buggers as well as the full release from the Dept. of Justice.
Approved:
THOMAS C- RUBIN and DANIEL C. BECKER
Assistant United States Attorneys
Before: HONORABLE NAOMI REICE BUCHWALD
United States Magistrate Judge
Southern District of New York
-----------------------------------------X
SEALED
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA COMPLAINT
-V- Violation of
1 U. S. C. S 371
KERRY ROGERS and
GENE O’BRIEN,
Defendants
COUNTIES OF OFFENSE-
NEW YORK AND ELSEWHERE
-----------------------------------------
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK, ss.:
LISA J. FERENCE, being duly sworn, deposes and says that she is a Special
Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and charges as follows:
COUNT ONE
1. From in or about 1997, until on or about today's date, in the Southern
District of New, York and elsewhere, KERRY ROGERS and GENE O'BRIEN, the
defendants, and others known and unknown, unlawfully, wilfully, and knowingly
did combine, conspire, confederate, and agree together and with each other
to commit an offense against the United States, to wit, to violate Title
18, United States Code, Section 1064.
2. It was a part and object of the conspiracy that KERRY ROGERS and
GENE O'BRIEN, the defendants, and others known and unknown, being engaged
in the business of betting and wagering, unlawfully, wilfully and knowingly,
would and did use a wire communication facility for the transmission in
interstate and foreign commerce of bets and wagers and information assisting
in the placing of bets and wagers on sporting events and contests, and
for the transmission of a wire communication which entitled the .recipient
to receive money and credit as a result of bets and wagers, and for information
assisting In the placing of bets and wagers, in violation of Title 18,
United States Code, Section 1084.
OVERT ACTS
3. In furtherance of said conspiracy and to effect the object thereof,
KERRY ROGERS and GENE O’BRIEN, the defendants, and others known and unknown,
committed the following overt acts in the southern District of New York
and elsewhere:
a. On or about October 15, 1997, an employee of Winner's Way in Las
Vegas, Nevada, sent a letter to an undercover agent located in New York,
New York.
b. In or about December 1997, an employee of Winner's Way sent a $400
check to an undercover agent located in New York, New York.
C. On or about December 11, 1997, GENE O'BRIEN, the defendant, had a
telephone conversation with an undercover agent located in New York, New
York.
(Title 18, United States Code, Section 371.)
The bases for my knowledge and the foregoing charge are, in part, as
follows:
4. I have been an FBI agent for two years. For the past 15 months,
I have been a member of the FBI's Computer Crimes squad and am familiar
with computers and the Internet.
S. I am familiar with the facts and circumstances set forth below from
my participation in the investigation and from my conversations with other
law enforcement agents and witnesses. Because this complaint is being
submitted for a limited purpose, I have not included details of every aspect
of this investigation. Where conversations or statements are related
herein, they are related in substance and in part.
6. During the course of this investigation, I received information from
various sources that Winner's Way was operating a sports betting business
over the Internet. As a result of this information, the FBI began
an investigation to determine, among other thinqs, whether Winner's Way
was using the Internet or other forms of wire communication facilities
in interstate and foreign commerce to conduct a sports betting business,
and, if so, who was responsible for that conduct.
7, Based on my experience on the FBI’s Computer Crimes squad as well
as various publications I have read, I know that the Internet in an immense
worldwide computer network used by millions of individuals daily.
The Internet is comprised of many smaller computer networks that are connected
to each other via telephone and other data lines. The World Wide
Web (“WWW”) is a hypertext-based system that facilitates the ability to
find and access information on the Internet. Many businesses, including
Winner's Way, use the WWW to advertise promote and provide information
about their services. Typically, communications over the Internet
-- including the references in this Complaint to accessing WWW pages --
take place over ordinary telephone lines through the use of a modem.
Those communications travel over ordinary telephone lines between the points
of origin (such as a computer server that is used to store and transmit
WWW pages) and the points of reception (such an the personal computer of
an individual who accessed a particular site on the WWW).
B. Using an undercover Internet account that can be accessed at the
FBI offices in New York, New York, I accessed the web site for Winner's
Way, at www.winnersway.com. The Winner's Way web site revealed the following:
a. Winner's Way is a sports wagering service that accepts bets on various
sporting events, including football, hockey, baseball and basketball.
b. Winner's Way offers a toll-free tolephone number, (800) 826-2255
to call for information concerning sports betting, and to open a betting
account.
9. On or about October 15, 1997, an undercover FBI special agent posing
an a potential bettor (the “UC”) called (800) 826-2255, the toll-free number
for Winner's Way. A male who identified himself as "Eli" answered
the telephone and confirmed that he worked for Winner's Way. "Eli"
stated that Winner's Way accepted bets on all major sports, that the minimum
wager is $50 and the maximum wager is $10,000, and that Winner's Way requires
a $500 minimum deposit to open an account. Eli stated that Winner's
Way has a toll-free telephone number to allow its customers to obtain betting
lines for various sporting contests. Eli-added that the UC could
open an account with Visa, Mastercard or the Discover card, as well as
through Western Union, MoneyGram or a bank wire transfer. During
this call, the UC asked that a brochure from Winner's Way be sent to the
UC in New York, Now York.
10. On or about October 19, 1997, the UC received a brochure from Winner's
Way that was sent to an Undercover address in New York,, New York.
The envelope contained a return address of Way Communications. Plaza
Inter Caribe, Suite 601-F, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, but the envelope
contained postmark dated October 15, 1997, from Las Vegas, Nevada, and
contained United States Postal Service postage.
11. On or about November 25, 1997, the UC, while in New York, New York,
opened a betting account with Winner's Way by callling one of Winner's
Way's toll-free numbers, (600) 422-6238, and by providing information to
the person who answered the telephone. Later that day, the UC sent
$600 by Western Union.
12. Later, that day, the UC called (800) 788-7362, one of Winner’s Way's
toll-free wagering lines from the FBI offices in New York, New York, and
placed two bets over the telephone. The UC bet on two National Football
League ("NFL") games scheduled to be played later that week. The
UC bet $55 that the total points scored in the game between the Green Bay
Packers and the Minnesota Vikings would be less than 45, and $55 that the
Dallas Cowboys would beat the Tennessee Oilers by more than 6.5 points.
The UC won the first bet and lost the second bet, and $10 in winnings was
credited to the UC's account with Winner's Way.
13. On or about December 3, 1997, the UC called (800) 788-7362 from
the FBI offices in New York, New York, and placed two bets over the telephone.
The UC bet on two NFL games scheduled to be played later that week.
The UC but $55 that the Green Bay Packers would beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
by more than 3.5 points, and $55 that the Philadelphia Eagles would beat
the New York Giants by more than 4.5 points. The UC won the first
bet and lost the second bet, and $50 in winnings was credited to the UC's
account with Winner's Way.
14. On or about December 10, 1997, the UC called (800) 826-2255 from
the FBI offices in New York, New York, asked that $400 in the UCI&
account be sent to the UC. The UC asked to speak with the owner,,
and the person who answered the telephone ("Employee #1") stated that GENE
O'BRIEN, the defendant, was the owner, but that O'BRIEN was not available
until the next day. Employee #1 also told the UC that Winner's Way
could not return the UC'a money until the following Tuesday, and provided
a telephone number for marketing department of Winner's Way, (800) 422-6238.
15. Later that day, the UC called (800) 422-6238, and spoke to another
employee of Winner's Way (“Employee #2”). The UC asked to speak with
GENE O'BRIEN, the defendant, and Employee #2 said that O'BRIEN would not
be there until the next day. After the UC asked to get money back
from Winner's Way, Employee #2 stated that he was presently in Las Vegas,
Nevada, that he would send the UC in New York# Now Yorky a check from Las
Vegas, Nevada, and that "Gene" would reimburse him from his account.
Employee #2 also stated that he worked for the marketing and advertising
agency associated with Winner's Way. Finally, Employee #2 provided
another telephone number to reach O'BRIEN, (800) 788-7362, and identified
O'BRIEN as an owner of Winner's Way.
16. On or about December 11, 1997, the UC called (800) 788-7362,
and spoke with GENE O'BRIEN, the defendant. O'BRIEN told the UC that
Winner's Way's corporate headquarters are in the Caribbean and that he
is in the Dominican Republic. O'BRIEN stated that the marketing office
for Winner's Way is in the United States and that he had two offices in
Las Vegas, Nevada, with approximately 35 employees. After the UC
told O'BRIEN that the UC was from New York, New York, O'BRIEN asked the
UC to refer his friends to Winner's Way. O'BRIEN also stated that
the UC would get a ten percent bonus for any referrals.
17. On or about December 12, 1997, the UC called (800) 788-7362 from
the FBI offices in Now York, Now York and placed two bets over the telephone.
The UC bet on two NFL games scheduled to be played on December 14, 1997.
The UC bet $55 that the Miami Dolphins would beat the Indianapolis Colts
by more than 4 points, and $55 that the total points scored in the game
between the Green Bay Packers and the Carolina Panthers would be more than
38. The UC lost the first bet and won the second bet, and $50 in
winnings was credited to the UC’S account with Winner's Way.
18. On or about December 16, 1997, the UC received at the UC's undercover
address in New York, New York, an envelope from Winner's Way that contained
a $400 United States Postal Money Order. The Postal Money Order contained
a handwritten notation that it was from an individual named "Henry" at
an address in Las Vegas, Nevada. The envelope containing the Postal
Money Order was postmarked in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the postage was from
the United States Postal Service.
19. On or about December 13, 1997, the UC called a toll-free number
used by Winner's Way and requested the return of the balance of the undercover
account.
20. On or about January 5, 1998, the UC received at the UC's undercover
address in New York, New York, an Federal Express envelope from Winner's
Way that contained a check for $165, the UC’S remaining account balance.
The check was payable through the Bank of America in New York, New York.
21. 1 have reviewed telephone records, which reveal that the telephonenumber
(800) 826-2255 is a toll-free number offered by LDDS World Communications.
The subscriber name for (800) 626-2255 is ORIX Systems, Inc., which has
an address of 1771 E. Flamingo Rd., Suite 200-B, Las Vegas, Nevada, and
a telephone number of (702) 792-2500. The review of the records of (800)
826-2255 also reveals that the number was called hundreds of times from
locations all over the United States, including numerous calls from New
York, New York, and from the Bronx. I believe it is likely that many,
it not all, of these calls, like those from the UC, were from bettors (i)
receiving information about sports betting with Winner's Way or (ii) placing
sports bets with Winner's Way.
22. On or about January 6, 1998 the UC called (702) 792-2500, and a
woman ("Employee #3”) answered the telephone by stating "ORIX." Employee
#3 told the UC that KERRY ROGERS, the defendant, oversees the Winner's
Way web site. The UC asked to speak to ROGERS and was eventually
connected to him. ROGERS told the UC that he is the "internet provider"
to the Winner's Way web site.
23. I have reviewed an advertisement for Winner's Way that was published
in Continental Airline's magazine in May 1997. That ad states, in
part: "Sportswagering now available on Internet: www.winnersway.com… Established
in 1989, Winner's Way gives you wagering freedom at your fingertips --
and it doesn't get any safer, easier or more secure."
24. An Internet search of InterNIC reveals that the Winner's Way web
site is registered to ORIX Systems, Inc. at 4634 S. Maryland Pkwy, Ste.
110, Las Vegas, Nevada. The technical contact listed for the web
site is KERRY ROGERS, the defendant.
25. I have reviewed other telephone records, which reveal that the telephone
number (800) 422-6238 -- which the UC had been told is the number for the
marketing department of Winner's Way -- is also subscribed to by ORIX Systems
in Las Vegas, Nevada. Records reveal that that telephone number has
been called thousands of times between January 1996 and January 1998 from
locations all over the United States, including numerous calls from New
York, New York, and from the Bronx. I believe it is likely that many,
if not all, of these calls, were from bettors calling Winner's Way.
26. 1 have reviewed records from the United States Customs Service which
reveal that an individual named "Kerry Rogers" travelled to the Caribbean
on numerous occasions in 1997.
WHEREFORE, deponent prays that warrants issue for the arrests of KERRY
ROGERS and GENE O'BRIEN, and that they be imprisoned or bailed as the case
may be.
LISA J. FERENCE
Special Agent
Federal Bureau of Investigation