A Manhattan court judge has sentenced a high-profile art dealer for his involvement in a high-stakes gambling ring. Bloomberg said that Hillel "Helly" Nahmad, whose gallery feature modern masters like Pablo Picasso, and owned apartments at the Trump Tower with a model for a girlfriend, has been sentenced for a year in prison for pleading guilty to leading and participating in a gambling network that catered to the ultra-rich and celebrities. The operations purportedly laundered over $100 million in proceeds. The charges seek for a prison term of one year to 18 months, with US prosecutors arguing in court that the son of billionaire art dealer David Nahmad should have had a harsher sentence because of his admission. Nahmad reportedly asked for probation to operate his Manhattan gallery and to teach underprivileged children from the Bronx and Brooklyn art.
Before the sentence was imposed by US District Judge Jesse Furman in Manhattan yesterday, Nahmad said, "I am ashamed. I have learned a hard, humiliating lesson, a humbling one. I no longer gamble. I work harder than ever in my art business, in the hope of restoring my good name."
The 35 year-old had acknowledged his plea in November last year that he lead and organized the high-stakes gambling business, of which he was the primary source of financing. Bloomberg said Nahmad was entitled to a substantial share of the ring's profits because of his role.
Before Furman, Nahmad had requested leniency in the sentencing, and claimed that he was committed to giving back to the community and sharing his love of art.
Furman said, "To sentence him to something he professes to love and allow his family's wealth to bail him out would not be punishment. It would not promote respect for the law, it would breed contempt for the law."
Nahmad has pleaded guilty to one count of operating an illegal gambling business following the US' move to drop its racketeering, money-laundering and other fraud charges against the art dealer. he had also agreed to forfeit all rights to a Raoul Dufy painting titled "Carnaval a Nice, 1937," which was the painting mentioned in a secret recording by US investigators of which Mahmad intended to sell to a buyer at an inflated price. Moreover, Nahmad has also agreed to forfeit $6.4 million and pay a $30,000 fine, and must surrender to U.S. prison officials on or by June 16.
