Federal authorities said that they cracked an international gambling ring calling itself Macho Sports, whose customers would place bets with bookies, by phone and online services, CNN reported. Authorities allege in the indictment, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for Southern California, that the illicit gambling company curried a "violent reputation" for its use of "intimidation, threats and violence."
18 individuals face racketeering and illegal gambling charges, according to the the indictment. Fifteen of those individuals were arrested earlier Wednesday in Southern California; Oslo, Norway; and Lima, Peru, the U.S. Attorney's Office for Southern California said in a press release.The illicit business' headquarters is in Peru.
Authorities took Jan Harald Portocarrero, one of the alleged ringleaders, into custody Wednesday night, said U.S. Attorney's office spokesman Andrew Schopler. There remains a search for two others, Young Hee Koh and Dunzmy June Nguyen.
"Criminal enterprises like 'Macho Sports' and their U.S. based 'bookmakers' prey on gambling addictions of their betting customers, wreaking havoc on people's lives and the lives of family members," Daphne Hearn, special agent in charge of the FBI's San Diego office, said in a press release.
Brothers Jan Harald Portocarrero and Erik Portocarrero, originally from California, set up Macho Sports International in Panama in 2002, according to Panamanian public documents cited in U.S. authorities' probable cause statement. The company moved its headquarters six years later to Peru, CNN reported.
Over the past decade, customers were invited to place bets on sporting events -- from NFL games to mixed-martial arts fights -- either through a system of bookies, by calling a toll-free phone number or through personal accounts set up on two Internet sites. Macho Sports employed phone operators, bookies, "sub-bookies," runners and collectors to deliver winnings and collect debts from customers, U.S. authorities explained.
The probable cause statement features excerpts of several phone wiretaps. In one, a bookie openly worries that he might get arrested.
