Art Dealer Pleads Guilty In Gambling Case

A New York-based art dealer has pleaded guilty to involvement in an illegal sports betting operation with alleged links to the Russian mob.

The Associated Press reported that Hillel “Helly” Nahmad had been on the hook for racketeering, money laundering and fraud. However, those charges, thanks to him admitting to illegal gambling and paying a $6.4 million judgement, were dropped.

“Judge, this all started as a group of friends betting on sports events,” Nahmad said in federal court in Manhattan. “But I recognize that I crossed a line, and I apologize to the court and my family…It started as a hobby, but unfortunately it became a business.”

He is scheduled to be sentenced on Mar. 16 and could face up to 18 months in jail, though his lawyers are trying to get a non-jail sentence by touting his clean past.

The 35-year-old’s gallery reportedly sells high-priced work by Chagall, Dali, Degas, Monet, Matisse and Warhol. It has remained open during the scandal.

The April indictment targeted 34 individuals.

The case has a poker connection. Underground card games in New York City, one of the many tentacles of the illegal gambling business, allegedly generated proceeds that were funneled to organized crime overseas. A handful of poker pros were also named in the indictment.

Just this week, it was reported that a Hollywood producer who pleaded guilty to involvement with the far-reaching gambling operation is seeking no jail time.

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