Rob Gorodetsky, "Future Face of Sports Gambling," gets 28 months for electronic fraud
Posted on April 30, 2021, 3:56 AM
Last updated: April 30, 2021, 04:31 h.
Sports betting company Rob Gorodetsky, whose bold, glamorous Instagram personality saw him appear in USA Today as "the future face of sports gambling" he was sentenced to 28 months in prison Thursday for bank fraud.
The 2017 USA Today profile described Gorodecki as one of the "most convincing and controversial" figures in sport. As the newspaper explained, he dated celebrities and beautiful women. He drove fast cars, "winning and losing millions of dollars" in what he called "BigRobStyle."
But a Chicago federal court heard during the trial that the character was largely the invention of a once painfully shy kid in the affluent North Shore suburbs.
Living Meme
According to his lawyers, Gorodetsky moved to Las Vegas to rediscover himself, after which he transformed into a "living meme". Attorney Chris Gair argued that BigRobStyle was living a lie. And Gorodetsky's sports betting skills were also a lie.
Profile USA Today was brought to the attention of the FBI and the Nevada Gaming Commission, which opened an investigation into the Gorodecki case. In January 2020, the FBI accused him of extorting one investor of $ 9.6 million between 2014 and 2018.
The victim is described in court papers as a successful New Jersey ophthalmologist who is the father of Gorodecki's ex-girlfriend.
Gorodetsky promised to reinvest the money into sports betting and other ventures. But he re-invested a nominal amount, according to prosecutors, but spent over $ 2.2 million on travel, entertainment, Rolls Royce, Bentley, two Lamborghinis and $ $ 324,000 jewelry value.
One-Track Mind
In a recent lawsuit, Gair described his client as a "pathological gambler" who was suspended from high school for setting up a "games room" and taking money from his classmates from a poker game.
According to Gair, during the cheating, Gorodetsky "could only concentrate on one thing: the rush he felt while gambling wins."
Gorodetsky spent a million dollars gambling in a week USA Today followed him for 2017. Back then it was said that the federal sports betting ban could soon be lifted in America. Had it happened, as it did a year later, Gorodetsky would have become "America's leading player in sports," according to his supporters.
When it becomes legal, we will be billionaires, ”said one USA Today. “We are the number 1 entity and intend to have a market share of at least 5 percent of the $ 150 billion industry. "
Before he was convicted, Gorodetsky apologized to his victim.
"You are very young," said US District Judge Elaine Bucklo. "But this is just a massive, massive scam."
Bucklo sent Gorodecki to prison and ordered him to pay off $ 7.2 million in outstanding losses.
