Fourth Plea Deal in Trincher-Linked NYC Poker, Sportsbetting Prosecutions

A fourth plea deal is now pending in the Eastern District of New York prosecutions of a major sportsbetting and high-stakes poker ring that operated in New York City, and that included both prominent poker players and alleged links to Russian organized crime.  Edwin Ting, one of 34 defendants in the case, will plead guilty September 4th to a single gambling-business charge of helping organize the ring's poker games.

Ting was among a dozen or so defendants with noted poker tournament cashes, having won more than $80,000 in several East Coast events in recent years.  Ting's pending plea deal was first reported in a New York Daily News piece, which also claimed a similar deal is also pending for another minor defendant in the case, prominent player Justin "BooostedJ" Smith; however, the possible Smith deal cannot be confirmed at this time from online court dockets.

Ting was charged with helping to operate the high-stakes poker games centered around former WPT champion Vadim Trincher, who remains indicted on several more serious charges.  Those games were often held in Trincher's own high-rise, Trump Towers apartment, the same elite location over which Trincher filed a $6 million mold-damage lawsuit against Trump Towers management, alleging faulty plumbing repairs.

The sweeping indictments in the case, US v. Tokhtakhounov et al, allege that Trincher and other heads of the NYC-based syndicate operated under the protection and guidance of Russian organized crime boss Alimzhan Tokhtakhounov.  Tokhtakhounov, known as "Taiwanchik" and "Akim", was also tied to the celebrity West Coast games featuring several Hollywood actors (Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and others) that were hosted and organized by Molly Bloom, another of the case's defendants.

Tokhtakhounov remains a fugitive from US justice, wanted international on arms-smuggling charges and domestically for his role in organizing an attempted fix of an Olympic event during the Salt Lake City Games.  The indictment alleges that millions were siphoned off from the poker and sportsbetting operations, and sent overseas to Tokhtakhounov and his other interests.

Ting's relatively minor role could still have netted him a five-year term, though he'll likely receive a much shorter sentence later this fall.  Ting becomes the fourth defendant of 34 indicted to plead guilty in the case, following similar deals for East Coasters William Barbalot and Kirill Rapoport and  a self-described Hollywood film producer, Bryan Zuriff, who was likely collected to the Bloom-run L.A. games.

More Plea Deals in Vadim Trincher Sportsbetting-Poker Ring Case

Eastern District of New York Department of Justice attorney Preet Bharara announced on Friday that plea deals have been reached with two more defendants in the case of the "Taiwanchik-Trincher" sportsbetting and racketeering ring, which allegedly operated elite high-stakes poker games in New York City and other locations and funneled millions in sports bets through offshore poker sites.

The two defendants whose deals were announced this week, Kirill Rapoport and William Barbalot, were among the organizers of Trincher's high-stakes poker games.  Each still faces a possible maximum five-year prison term when sentenced in December, though the actual sentence length will likely be much shorter.  The two were also fined, $250,000 and $150,00 for Rapoport and Barbalot, respectively.

Rapoport and Barbalot are the second and third Taiwanchik-Trincher indictees to plead out in the case, which included charges against 34 separate defendants connected to the sportsbetting, poker, and strong-arming/extortion operations used against a few deep-in-debt players.

The Trincher in the case is Vadim Trincher, who won a 2009 World Poker Tour event for more than $700,000 and was also in the news not too long after suing Trump Towers owners for $6 million over mold damage to his ritzy high-rise apartment, alleging faulty plumbing repairs.  Many of the exclusive high-stakes games were held in Trincher's apartment.  Trincher's sons Illya and Eugene are also named in the indictment.

"Taiwanchik" is the nickname given to Alimzhan Tokhtakhounov, an alleged Russian mobster who received payment from the men (including Vadim Trincher) who ran the States-based operations.  Millions were allegedly sent offshore to Tokhtakhounov from the racket, who has also been alleged to be a part of international arms-smuggling operations.  Tokhtakhounov, who is also known as "Akim," remains outside the United States and has yet to be arrested in connection with the case.

Tokhtakhounov has also been linked to the celebrity California card games that included many Hollywood A-listers, and that resulted in a civil suit against its participants by the victims of a investment fraudster who blew his stolen loot at those tables.  Those games were organized by California socialite Molly Bloom, who is another of the Taiwanchik-Trincher defendants and may have been operating the Cali games under Tokhtakhounov's oversight and protection.

Numerous other poker figures remain as defendants in the case, including Abe Mosseri, Alexander Katchaloff, Justin "BooostedJ" Smith, Peter "Nordberg" Feldman, John Hanson, Eddie Ting and Bill Edler.  Most of those face charges comparative to what Barbalot and Rapoport faced.  Several of those noted players have been charged with accepting and relaying sportsbets which were then funneled through Trincher's offshore connections.