Stark County men convicted of running illegal gambling operations following 2018 raids

Four men are facing federal prison terms for running several illegal gambling businesses in Stark County and hiding millions in proceeds from the IRS.

A federal jury in Cleveland on Friday convicted Christos Karasarides Jr. of tax evasion, gambling, money laundering, conspiracy and obstruction crimes tied to the operation of former Skilled Shamrock at 4225 Hills and Dales Road NW in Plain Township; the former Redemption Skill Games 777 at 2824-2826 Whipple Ave. NW; and the former Plaza 777 at 2128 Columbus Road NE.

The jury also convicted Ronald DiPietro, a certified public accountant, of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business, operating an illegal gambling business, tax evasion and preparing false income tax returns.

Meanwhile, two others pleaded guilty.

The verdicts capped a yearslong probe after federal agents raided several skill games parlors in July 2018.

Illegal gambling businesses operated for years in Stark County

According to a news release from U.S. Department of Justice: Between 2009 and 2018, Karasarides, Ronald DiPietro and others worked as an organized criminal operation to run the gambling parlors using false or straw ownership documents to hide their involvement.

At Skilled Shamrock, which primarily operated slot machines, patrons gambled more than $34 million between 2012 and 2017, with Skilled Shamrock’s owners retaining more than $7 million, according to federal investigators.

"Redemption was even busier than Skilled Shamrock and had many more slot machines so its profits were at least equal to, if not greater than, Skilled Shamrock’s," federal prosecutors wrote in one brief ahead of the trial.

Karasarides, 58, owed the IRS more than $2 million in taxes on income he earned gambling and from other businesses he ran, which the IRS was trying to collect.

DiPietro assisted Karasarides in thwarting the IRS’s collection efforts by falsely representing to the IRS, including by preparing tax returns for Karasarides, that Karasarides did not have the assets or income to pay his taxes.

Evidence at trial also showed that Karasarides conspired to launder his money to make it more difficult for the IRS to seize his home by using a straw purchaser to disguise his ownership of it. Records show he was living in Hills & Dales village.

The Canton Repository has reached out to the defense attorneys for comment.

What did they do with the money?

Karasarides and DiPietro used the proceeds buy vehicles and property. Karasarides also took extravagant gambling trips, making millions of dollars of bets at legal casinos throughout the country. They also kept thousands and sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash or silver at their homes and other properties they controlled. For instance, law enforcement seized more than $150,000 in cash from Karasarides’ house.

Sentencing for both men is scheduled for May 1 before U.S. District Judge Donald Nugent.

Karasarides faces up to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering, five years in prison for tax evasion, five years in prison for each count of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business, five years in prison for each count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, five years in prison for falsification of records, three years in prison for each count of operating an illegal gambling business, three years in prison for witness tampering, and three years in prison for filing false income tax returns.

DiPietro, 65, faces a maximum of five years in prison for conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business, three years in prison for operating an illegal gambling business, five years in prison for tax evasion and three years in prison for each count of preparing false income tax returns. He was associated with the Canton-based tax service, Ron Anderson & Associates, according to court filings in the case.

Two others involved in illegal gambling case pleaded guilty

Just prior to the trial, co-defendant Thomas Helmick, who served as a paper owner of one of Karasarides’ illegal gambling businesses, pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States. Helmick faces up to five years in prison during his sentencing hearing on May 2.

Helmick is Karasarides' nephew, according to court documents filed in the case.

During the course of the trial, another co-defendant, Christopher Karasarides, pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States by executing false documents and acting as a named owner for some of Christos Karasarides’ assets.

Christopher Karasarides, Christos' son, is scheduled to be sentenced April 30. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

Taking part in the investigation were the IRS Criminal Investigation; U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations; the U.S. Department of Treasury, Office of Inspector General; Stark County Prosecutor’s Office; Ohio Casino Control Commission; and Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission-Major Crimes Task Force.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Christos Karasarides, Ronald DiPietro convicted of illegal gambling