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Gregory Paloian and his agents were so aggressive with gamblers, one actually "burst into tears"
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Gamblers in the ring were referred to as “goof, goofball, idiot, ‘f*&#%g little pu$%y’, little c&%*sucker and other descriptive monikers”
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The case has close ties to another high profile bookmaking investigation in the Chicago area involving the brother of Bears great Brian Urlacher
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Casey Urlacher was pardoned by former President Donald Trump during his final days in office
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Federal prosecutors are looking to throw the book at bookie Gregory Paloian, who they say routinely terrorized gamblers.
Paloian is even accused of causing one deadbeat gambler to "burst into tears".
He and his agents referred to other degenerates in their ring of around 60 sports bettors as “goof, goofball, idiot, ‘f*&#%g little pu$%y’, little c&%*sucker, among other monikers.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Terry Kinney told the Court Paloian had ties to the mob with a lengthy criminal history that included a racketeering conviction involving a large gambling enterprise that ran from 1985 until 1998.
And Kinney wasn't buying the picture of innocence Paloian's own attorney painted of him. Defense attorney Joseph Urgo wrote in his memo to the Court that his client “conducted that business in as ‘clean’ a manner as possible, the goal being to never financially exploit anyone, never allow anyone to gamble beyond their means. And safeguards were developed and utilized to ensure this.”
The Assistant U.S. Attorney called that description “more fantasy, tall tales, and wishful thinking than reality".
Kinney tied Paloian’s case to a more high profile gambling ring run by Vincent “Uncle Mick” DelGiudice. He admitted to running the Chicago sports bookmaking business between the years 2016 through 2019.
That case resulted in charges against Mettawa Mayor Casey Urlacher, the brother of Chicago Bears Brian Urlacher who would later be pardoned in January by Donald Trump as he was about to leave office.
Others involved in the DelGiudice business were not so lucky. Former Chicago officer Nicholas Stella was charged for his alleged role in the ring. He is also accused of destroying a phone that was sought for evidence in alleged attack on girlfriend.
Paloian had surrendered his own phone to law enforcement. They immediately placed the phone in airplane mode to prevent the bookie from accessing it remotely. Police later determined that all the data had already been erased.
Paloian’s plea agreement will likely result in up to three years prison, but prosecutors may challenge that.
He previously served 3.5 years in prison for running the mob-connected bookmaking operation that reportedly took in millions of dollars over 20 years.
And some things never change.
"Paloian said that a bettor would be told cannons would be pointed at his head if he didn’t pay,” prosecutors wrote in a 2002 sentencing memo.
- Jagajeet Chiba, Gambling911.com
