Former NBA nice Gilbert Arenas has been arrested in reference to unlawful high-stakes poker video games that he allegedly hosted at his mansion in Encino, California. He was detained on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. Gilbert was arraigned that very same day and pleaded not responsible to the costs. Arenas was launched on $50,000 bond, and his trial is scheduled to start Sept. 23.
Concerning the Suspected Playing Actions
In a press launch dated July 30, the U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace for the Central District of California described the actions that led to the arrest of not solely Gilbert Arenas but additionally 5 different defendants.
Gilbert ArenasArenas, who can be recognized in paperwork as “Agent Zero,” stands accused of renting out his property to the 5 others being charged in order that they may set up and handle high-stakes poker occasions. And these evenings are correctly described as “occasions” and never merely video games.
You see, these video games supposedly featured cooks, valets, and safety guards employed to provide the contributors gratifying and secure experiences. Younger ladies had been employed who obtained gratuities for serving drinks and performing massages. They even allegedly “supplied companionship to the poker gamers” in alternate for suggestions, no matter which means.
Although there have been a number of video games unfold, essentially the most distinguished one appears to have been Pot Restrict Omaha. The pots had been raked, and that is how the home made cash from the gamers. Prosecutors contend that these video games came about between September 2021 and July 2022.
For his function on this enterprise, Gilbert Arenas faces one depend of conspiracy to function an unlawful playing enterprise, one depend of working an unlawful playing enterprise, and one depend of creating false statements to federal investigators. Every of those three counts carries a most sentence of 5 years in jail, so Gilbert might presumably be sentenced to fifteen years’ imprisonment.
Encino Mansion Owned by Gilbert ArenasDifferent Defendants
Apart from Arenas, 5 others are going through costs in reference to this case.
Yevgeni Gershman, 49, of Woodland Hills, was the one who employed the younger ladies to work in the course of the video games. He is an Israeli citizen – suspected of being a higher-up in organized crime rings – who allegedly entered right into a pretend marriage to expedite his residence in america. He faces counts of conspiracy to function an unlawful playing enterprise, working an unlawful playing enterprise, conspiracy to commit marriage fraud, marriage fraud, and making a false assertion on an immigration doc.
Ievgen Krachun, a 43-year-old from Tarzana, was a chip runner in the course of the video games. He tracked wins and losses for the gamers, distributed chips, and paid workers. He faces one depend of conspiracy to function an unlawful playing enterprise and one depend of working an unlawful playing enterprise.
Three different people allegedly managed the video games along with Gershman. They every face counts of conspiracy to function an unlawful playing enterprise and working an unlawful playing enterprise. The three of them are:
Evgenni Tourevski, 48, from Tarzana, who supposedly dealt with discovering dealersAllan Austria, 52, from West Hills, who allegedly took care of securityYarin Cohen, 27, from Tarzana, who authorities mentioned maintained monetary data and saved information concerning rake collected and bills
What Does the Legislation Say?
Although all of the defendants are going through federal costs concerning playing, the courts depend on state legislation to find out what’s or is not unlawful playing. Subsequently, we have determined to look at the California Prison Code to see what it says about this matter. Here is part of part 337j:
(a) It’s illegal for any individual, as proprietor, lessee, or worker, whether or not for rent or not, both solely or along with others, to do any of the next with out having first procured and thereafter maintained in impact all federal, state, and native licenses required by legislation:
(1) To deal, function, stick with it, conduct, preserve, or expose for play on this state any managed sport.
(2) To obtain, immediately or not directly, any compensation or reward or any proportion or share of the income, for protecting, working, or carrying on any managed sport.
(3) To fabricate, distribute, or restore any playing gear throughout the boundaries of this state, or to obtain, immediately or not directly, any compensation or reward for the manufacture, distribution, or restore of any playing gear throughout the boundaries of this state. (b) It’s illegal for any individual to knowingly allow any managed sport to be performed, operated, dealt, or carried on in any home or constructing or different premises that she or he owns or leases, in entire or partly, if that exercise is undertaken by an individual who is just not licensed as required by state legislation, or by an worker of that individual.
We are able to see that the 5 co-defendants (aside from Arenas) might get in bother for working a managed sport below 337j(a)(1) and for receiving cash from the identical below 337j(a)(2). Arenas might be discovered responsible below 337j(b) for knowingly permitting his home for use for such actions.
After all, all of those provisions are depending on the definition of “managed sport.” Thankfully, one other a part of 337j explains precisely what a managed sport is:
(e) (1) As used on this part, “managed sport” means any poker or Pai Gow sport, and some other sport performed with playing cards or tiles, or each, and authorised by the Division of Justice, and any sport of probability, together with any playing machine, performed for forex, examine, credit score, or some other factor of worth that isn’t prohibited and made illegal by statute or native ordinance.
(2) As used on this part, “managed sport” doesn’t embody any of the next:
(A) The sport of bingo performed pursuant to Part 326.3 or 326.5.
(B) Parimutuel racing on horse races regulated by the California Horse Racing Board.
(C) Any lottery sport performed by the California State Lottery.
(D) Video games performed with playing cards in non-public properties or residences, by which no individual makes cash for working the sport, besides as a participant.
It is clear from this textual content that poker is certainly a managed sport. Curiously, there’s an exception for house video games the place there isn’t any home taking a minimize of the proceeds. Nonetheless, on condition that the defendants are believed to have raked the video games, this line of protection would unlikely show fruitful for them.
On to the penalties for violating this legislation:
(d) Any one who violates, makes an attempt to violate, or conspires to violate this part shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail for not multiple 12 months or by a superb of no more than ten thousand {dollars} ($10,000), or by each imprisonment and superb. A second offense of this part is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for a interval of not multiple 12 months or within the state jail or by a superb of no more than ten thousand {dollars} ($10,000), or by each imprisonment and superb.
We see right here that breaking this legislation is punishable by fines and/or imprisonment for not longer than a 12 months. Nonetheless, that is the penalty for breaking California legislation. As a result of the federal authorities has stepped in, the defendants are virtually definitely being charged with violations of 18 U.S. Code § 1955, a part of which reads:
(a)Whoever conducts, funds, manages, supervises, directs, or owns all or a part of an unlawful playing enterprise shall be fined below this title or imprisoned no more than 5 years, or each.
(b)As used on this part—
(1)“unlawful playing enterprise” means a playing enterprise which—
(i)is a violation of the legislation of a State or political subdivision by which it’s performed;
(ii)entails 5 or extra individuals who conduct, finance, handle, supervise, direct, or personal all or a part of such enterprise; and
(iii)has been or stays in considerably steady operation for a interval in extra of thirty days or has a gross income of $2,000 in any single day.
This ups the ante to imprisonment for so long as 5 years.
Gilbert Arenas Reacts
Following the arraignment on July 30, Arenas’ lawyer, Jerome Friedberg, mentioned, “At this level within the case, he’s presumed harmless, proper? He has the identical proper as some other citizen to that presumption, and that is how he ought to be handled.”
Arenas himself was extra exuberant, releasing a video on X the place he danced down the steps of the courthouse saying, “Cannot maintain me, child; they cannot maintain me”:
Gilbert Arenas a Confirmed Dumbass?
We right here at Skilled Rakeback are usually towards anti-gambling crusades as a result of we really feel that grown folks should do as they want with their very own cash. If a number of folks get collectively consensually for the aim of enjoying poker, even when a number of of them acts as the home and collects a revenue, we really feel that it is no one else’s enterprise as a result of no outdoors occasion is harmed on account of their actions.
That mentioned, we can’t assist however be mystified and perplexed by the apparently silly conduct of Gilbert throughout this entire episode. One of many costs he is going through, a depend of creating false statements to federal investigators, is just not being levied towards any of the opposite 5 defendants. The rationale for this cost is as a result of after the sport was raided in July 2022, Arenas informed federal officers that he knew nothing of the playing that was being carried on in his home. Nonetheless, investigators acquired ahold of textual content messages from Gilbert concerning the planning of the video games, recruiting employees to work the video games, safety, funds, and different associated issues.
The truth that police seized a large desk with “Arenas Poker Membership” written in massive font within the center additionally does not assist Gilbert’s rivalry that he had nothing to do with the underground poker video games.
Desk Discovered at Arenas’ Encino ResidenceFollowing his launch, Gilbert went on the air in a YouTube stay stream on July 31 whereby he uttered some actual gems. “They took my passport. That is loopy as a result of I’ve acquired one other one,” Gilbert mentioned. “You gotta have two. You suppose I am dumb?”
An trade insider commented:
Sure, I do suppose you might be completely fucking retarded, sir. One does not BRAG about one’s PLAN B ESCAPE ROUTE when going through jail time.
Arenas, later in the identical stream, revealed one other concept he had for escaping imprisonment. Talking of his co-defendants, Gilbert mentioned, “Good luck in court docket as a result of I am fairly certain I am not going to be there when it is time to go as a result of I am snitching.”
The knowledge of boasting about turning into a snitch when one of many accused supposedly has connections to organized crime is doubtful. In any case, Gilbert claims to have had no data of what was happening at his mansion, so what might he presumably snitch about?
Arenas does have 1.1 million Instagram followers and near a quarter-million subscribers on YouTube the place he has developed a clownish and irreverent persona. It is attainable that he is appearing in a deliberatively provocative method in order to make his content material extra partaking; nevertheless, he is enjoying a harmful sport whereby his feedback might be interpreted by others in one other technique to his detriment.
Not Arenas’ First Run-in With the Legislation
Gilbert has had previous cases of working afoul of the legislation. In December 2009, he acquired right into a dispute about money owed from enjoying the cardboard sport booray with teammate Javaris Crittenton and introduced 4 unloaded weapons into the locker room, difficult Crittenton to decide on one. Javaris responded by pulling out a loaded gun and pointing it at Arenas. Different gamers fled the scene.
The police and U.S. Lawyer’s workplace performed an investigation. Ultimately, Arenas pleaded responsible to a felony violation of the Washington, D.C. gun-control legal guidelines and was sentenced to 2 years of probation and a month in a midway home. He was additionally suspended on Jan. 27, 2010 for the rest of the season.
Then in June 2013, Gilbert was driving a pickup truck when he was pulled over by the LAPD and arrested for possession of unlawful fireworks. Officers then eliminated a number of packing containers of fireworks from the again of the truck. The amount of fireworks being transported by Arenas was evidently sufficient that the police needed to name within the bomb squad to correctly get rid of them.
He seemingly discovered little from these experiences as in August 2013, he gave out recommendation on keep away from site visitors tickets from automated cameras. He defined that you would be able to preserve the clean vendor plates in your automotive with out ever changing them, and that manner, the cameras cannot determine what automotive dedicated the infraction. Arenas defined that he had employed this technique for 4 months whereas committing 60 violations and receiving no tickets.
Gilbert Arenas Skilled Biography
Gilbert Jay Arenas, Jr. (born Jan. 6, 1982 in Tampa, FL) moved at a younger age to the San Fernando Valley in California and attended highschool in Los Angeles. He obtained a scholarship to the College of Arizona, the place he settled into the place of level guard, and was finally drafted by the Golden State Warriors within the 2001 NBA draft.
After two years with the Warriors, Gilbert was signed to the Wizards the place he spent nearly all of his NBA profession, remaining with the staff till 2010. It was with the Wizards that he turned an enormous sensation, being named thrice to the All-Star sport.
After quick stints with the Orlando Magic and Memphis Grizzlies, Arenas moved to the Shanghai Sharks for a season within the Chinese language Basketball Affiliation 2012 – 2013. He then retired from basketball.
From August 2018 to November 2023, Arenas hosted “The No Chill Podcast.” In February 2023, he began one other podcast, known as “Gil’s Enviornment,” which remains to be energetic. Each podcasts have a give attention to basketball. He additionally usually seems as a visitor on different sports activities podcasts and reveals.
Gilbert and Poker
Gilbert Arenas isn’t just the alleged mastermind of a legal poker ring. He is additionally a longtime participant of the sport. In 2010, he mentioned in an interview that he performed poker on his laptop, however he clarified that he was simply enjoying towards the CPU and never towards different gamers.
Nonetheless, just some years later in 2014, he was noticed on the PokerStars Caribbean Journey. Not solely did he sit down in money video games towards the likes of Jason Mercier and Scott Seiver, however he additionally entered the $10,000-buyin Important Occasion. Commentators praised the best way he dealt with his chips and paid consideration to the poker motion.
In 2022, Gilbert appeared on the Hustler On line casino Dwell stream the place he performed $100/$200/$200 PLO. The identical 12 months, he additionally appeared on a World Poker Tour broadcast.
No Must Get Caught up in Underground Video games
It is fairly weird that Gilbert Arenas would become involved in these sorts of illicit video games particularly within the Los Angeles space, which already has loads of nice authorized cardrooms, just like the Commerce On line casino. He had a greater concept again when he used to play on his laptop though we are able to go a step additional than he did by enjoying on-line for actual cash towards precise human opponents. There are a selection of web poker websites that will let you do that, and it is not towards the legislation for you, as a participant, to entry and play at these tables.
Maybe the very best on-line poker website for Californians is Ignition Poker. Once you make a deposit by way of crypto, you will qualify for a 150% as much as $1,500 poker bonus. Click on under to start:
If you would like to be taught extra about Ignition first, then you possibly can browse over to this complete Ignition Poker overview. For a rigorously curated record of different wonderful choices for Californians, look to this California on-line poker information. If you happen to reside elsewhere within the nation, then maybe this web page dedicated to offshore poker within the USA would enchantment to you as a substitute.
Aug. 3, 2025 – by Max Golden, Editor-in-Chief
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