Las Vegas Man Sentenced to 5 Months in Prison

A  man from Las Vegas was sentenced to 5 months in prison after he pleaded guilty in March in assisting overseas internet poker companies conceal payments from their clients in the United States.

Chad Elie, 32 years old, was charged as part of the “Black Friday” crackdown on illegal online gambling that focused on the founders of the 3 largest Internet poker companies running in the United States at the time: PokerStars, Absolute Poker and Full Tilt Poker.

“He was in a sense playing a game with the government, a catch-me-if-you-can kind of game,” Kaplan said today about Elie. “That just can’t be overlooked.”

Elie pleaded guilty in March to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and to operating an illegal gambling business. The plea came shortly before he was set to go to trial.

He was sentenced Wednesday to five months in prison, and ordered to forfeit $500,000.

“I am just really sorry, I really regret my actions,” Elie was quoted as saying Wednesday by the Journal.