Former NBA star Gilbert Arenas and five others, including a suspected high-level member of an Israeli organized crime group, were arrested Wednesday on federal charges alleging they operated an illegal gambling business involving high-stakes poker games in Encino.
Arenas, 43, of Woodland Hills, is charged with one count each of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business, operating an illegal gambling business, and making false statements to federal investigators, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Also charged in the indictment with conspiracy and operating an illegal gambling business are:
-- Yevgeni Gershman, 49, of Woodland Hills, a suspected organized crime figure from Israel;
-- Evgenni Tourevski, 48, of Tarzana;
-- Allan Austria, 52, of West Hills;
-- Yarin Cohen, 27,of Tarzana; and
-- Ievgen Krachun, 43, of Tarzana.
The defendants were scheduled to make their initial appearances and arraignments Wednesday afternoon in U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles.
According to the indictment, Arenas rented out an Encino mansion he owned for the purpose of hosting high-stakes illegal poker games. At Arenas' direction, Arthur Kats, 51, of West Hollywood, staged the house to host the games, found co-conspirators to operate the games, and collected rent from the co-conspirators on Arenas' behalf from September 2021 to July 2022, federal prosecutors allege.
Gershman, Tourevski, Austria and Cohen managed illegal "Pot Limit Omaha" poker games, among other illegal games, at the home, collected a fee the house charged from each pot either as a percentage or a fixed amount per hand and invited players to compete, the indictment contends.
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Young women allegedly collected tips to serve drinks, provide massages, and offer companionship to the poker players, prosecutors allege, and were charged a percentage of their earnings from working the games. Chefs, valets and armed security guards also were hired to staff the games, according to the indictment.
The U.S. Attorney's Office also contends that Krachun worked as a "chip runner," in which he tracked players' wins and losses, distributed poker chips, and paid employees.
Gershman, an Israeli citizen, is charged along with Valentina Cojocari, 35, of Woodland Hills, with three additional counts -- conspiracy to commit marriage fraud, marriage fraud, and making a false statement on an immigration document, according to the indictment.
Prosecutors allege that in early 2022, Gershman conspired with Cojocari to enter into a sham marriage for the purposes of obtaining permanent legal status in the United States and lied to immigration authorities to procure legal status for Gershman, who provided financial support to Cojocari in exchange for her participation in the sham marriage.
Both Gershman and Cojocari submitted false information on their U.S. immigration forms, including Gershman's answers of "no" as to whether he had ever been detained by any law enforcement official and whether he intended to engage in illegal gambling or any other form of commercialized vice, federal prosecutors said.
Cojocari was also arrested Wednesday and is scheduled to appear in court later with the other defendants.
If convicted, the defendants would face up to five years in federal prison for each count, prosecutors noted.
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