Four More Defendants Plead Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Their Roles in Two International Sportsbooks

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that Noah Siegel pled guilty today in Manhattan federal court to transmission of wagering information in interstate commerce. His co-defendants Moshe Oratz and Jonathan Hirsch pled guilty to the same offense earlier this week on December 3 and 4, 2013, respectively. An additional co-defendant, Michael Sall, also pled guilty on December 4, 2013, to interstate travel in aid of an unlawful activity—illegal gambling. Siegel, Oratz, Hirsch, and Sall were charged in April 2013 along with 30 other alleged members and associates of two Russian-American organized crime enterprises in an indictment that included racketeering, money laundering, extortion, and various gambling offenses. All four defendants pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Jesse M. Furman.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said, “Noah Siegel, Moshe Oratz, Jonathan Hirsch, and Michael Sall are the latest defendants convicted for their roles in this highly lucrative, underground gambling operation. Their guilty pleas bring us ever closer to bringing each and every person involved to justice.”

According to the indictment, other documents filed in Manhattan federal court, and statements made at various proceedings in this case, including today’s guilty plea:

Illya Trincher and Hillel Nahmad, Siegel, Oratz, and Hirsch’s co-defendants ran a high-stakes illegal gambling business that catered primarily to millionaire and billionaire clients. Their business utilized several online gambling websites that operated illegally in the United States to generate tens of millions of dollars of sports bets each year. Siegel was a partner of Trincher and Nahmad in their sportsbook and helped select wagers and handicap bets. Oratz assisted Trincher and Nahmad’s sportsbook by providing them with accounts at illegal online betting websites, and Hirsch worked for Trincher and Nahmad’s sportsbook as an accountant and bookkeeper.

The Taiwanchik-Trincher Organization, operated by Anatoly Golubchik and Vadim Trincher, is a nationwide criminal enterprise with strong ties to Russia and Ukraine. The leadership of the organization ran an international sportsbook that catered primarily to Russian oligarchs living in Russia and Ukraine and throughout the world. The Taiwanchik-Trincher Organization laundered tens of millions of dollars in proceeds from the gambling operation from Russia and the Ukraine through shell companies and bank accounts in Cyprus and from Cyprus into the United States. Once the money arrived in the United States, it was either laundered through additional shell companies or invested in seemingly legitimate investments, such as hedge funds or real estate. Sall helped Golubchik and Trincher invest the proceeds of their illegal international gambling activities into various domestic investments.

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Siegel, 31, of New York, New York, faces a maximum of two years in prison and one year of supervised release. As part of his plea agreement, Siegel agreed to forfeit $400,000. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Furman on April 10, 2014, at 3:45 p.m.

Oratz, 38, of Brooklyn, New York, faces a maximum of two years in prison and one year of supervised release. As part of his plea agreement, Oratz, agreed to forfeit $325,000. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Furman on April 8, 2014, at 3:00 p.m.

Hirsch, 30, of New York, New York, faces a maximum of two years in prison and one year of supervised release. As part of his plea agreement, Hirsch agreed to forfeit $80,600. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Furman on April 10, 2014, at 3:00 p.m.

Sall, 68, of Sunny Isles Beach, Florida, faces a maximum of five years in prison and three years of supervised release. As part of his plea agreement, Sall agreed to forfeit $1,300,000. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Furman on April 9, 2014, at 3:00 p.m.

Oratz, Hirsch, Siegel, and Sall are the 20th, 21st, 22nd, and 23rd defendants in this case to plead guilty. The defendants who have pled to date have agreed to forfeit, in total, more than $68,000,000.00. The following defendants previously pled guilty and have been or await sentencing:

• Bryan Zuriff pled guilty to gambling charges on July 26, 2013, and was sentenced on November 25, 2013;
• William Barbalat pled guilty to gambling charges on August 14, 2013;
• Kirill Rapoport pled guilty to gambling charges on August 16, 2013;
• Edwin Ting and Justin Smith pled guilty to gambling charges on September 4, 2013;
• Dmitry Druzhinsky and David Aaron pled guilty to gambling charges on October 4, 2013;
• Alexander Zaverukha pled guilty to gambling charges on October 10, 2013;
• Nicholas Hirsch pled guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud on October 16, 2013;
• Anatoly Shteyngrob pled guilty to conspiring to commit money laundering on October 17, 2013;
• Yugeshwar Rajkumar pled guilty to gambling charges on October 18, 2013;
• Stan Greenberg pled guilty to conspiring to commit racketeering on October 22, 2013;
• Arthur Azen pled guilty to conspiring to commit money laundering and conspiring to collect extensions of credit by extortionate means on November 5, 2013;
• Hillel Nahmad pled guilty to gambling charges on November 12, 2013;
• Vadim Trincher pled guilty to conspiring to commit racketeering on November 14, 2013;
• Eugene Trincher pled guilty to gambling charges on November 14, 2013;
• Anatoly Golubchik pled guilty to conspiring to commit racketeering on November 15, 2013;
• Illya Trincher pled guilty to gambling charges on November 15, 2013; and
• Ronald Uy pled guilty to structuring financial transactions on November 25, 2013.

Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the New York City Police Department, and the Internal Revenue Service.

The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Organized Crime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Harris M. Fischman, Joshua A. Naftalis, Peter Skinner, and Kristy J. Greenberg of the Organized Crime Unit are in charge of the prosecution. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexander Wilson and Christine Magdo of the Office’s Asset Forfeiture Unit are responsible for the forfeiture aspects of the case.