North Shore Butcher Sentenced to Year in Prison over Sports Gambling

A butcher, resident of Highland Park was sentenced to one year in prison for running an illegal sports betting operation. The 63-year-old Domenic Poeta pleaded guilty back in August to filing false tax return and running an illegal betting operation. Besides the prison sentence, the convicted has to repay some $1.4 million in taxes.

One Year Prison Sentence for a North Shore Butcher over Sports Gambling

A butcher from North Shore was sentenced to one year in federal prison on Monday this week for running illegal sports betting operation that generated millions of income for him.

After pleading guilty in August to running an illegal betting operation and filing false tax return, Domenic Poeta of Highland Park, Chicago was sentenced this week during a 45-minute videoconference hearing. Besides one year in prison, U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly sentenced the 63-year-old man to repay $1.4 million in taxes.

Although initially, Mr. Poeta requested a lighter sentence of home probation, his request was rejected. In fact, in light of the many gamblers who suffered from the illegal operation ran by Mr. Poeta, the prosecutors asked for a three-year sentence.

However, the defendant entered into a plea agreement with prosecutors admitting that with the help of offshore betting websites he processed millions of dollars in sports betting wagers in the period 2014-2018. Consequently, none of that income was reported to the IRS.

Mr. Poeta Had Significant Expenditures

According to the prosecutors, in the period 2014-2018, Mr. Poeta’s expenses surpassed $3.7 million. The prosecutors revealed that some $514,000 were spent on a family wrestling gym and some $620,000 were allocated to real estate. Another $800,000 Mr. Poeta spent on various investments and more than $1 million was spent on mortgage payments.

In contrast to the hefty expenses, the prosecutors revealed that through his butcher business, Mr. Poeta reported only $50,000 in taxable income for the years of running the illegal gambling operation. As a result, he paid only $7,000 in taxes.

The Convicted to Report to Prison until May 29 Next Year

Judge Kennelly noted that Mr. Poeta’s gambling operation was significant in size and “quite likely an undercount by a significant amount.” However, the Judge acknowledged Mr. Poeta’s age and risk of COVID-19 and postponed the date when he needs to report to prison. So Mr. Poeta will have until May 29 next year to report to prison for his one-year sentence.

“It’s breathtaking, quite honestly.”

U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly

During the hearing on Monday, Mr. Poeta apologized for his wrongdoings. He said he wants to keep helping people and outlined that he thinks that there are a lot of people who need him. “I just want to do the right thing and just pay my debt,” stressed Mr. Poeta.