Richard Lee Cuts Deal With Texas Prosecutors

Richard Lee, the sixth-place finisher of the 2006 World Series of Poker, will give up $2.2 million dollars to the state of Texas as part of his plea agreement made yesterday with county prosecutors. He won't go to jail.

Last month, Lee and four partners were charged with promoting gambling for running a website on which they collected sports bets. The website was designed to look like it was being run from an offshore country, but prosecutors say it was being run by Lee and his partners at a home in Texas.

As part of the plea agreement, Lee plead no contest to the charges, will pay a $2,000 fine, and will forfeit the $2.2 million that was seized when officers served a warrant at one of Lee's San Antonio homes in January.

The charges are misdemeanors, but the state was prepared to levy felony charges against Lee and his partners if they didn't agree to a plea deal.

Police have been investigating Lee and his partners for 14 months. Lee claimed the money came from his 2006 WSOP success, while investigators say it came from the illegal sports booking operation. Lee won $2.8 million at the 2006 WSOP main event.

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