WASHINGTON – A Silver Spring used car dealer was indicted for running a sports betting operation in Maryland for three years, officials announced Wednesday.
John David Michael, 50, of Holly Grove Road, was indicted Monday by a federal grand jury on federal tax, gambling and money laundering violations, said Lynne Battaglia, U.S. attorney for Maryland.
Between October 1992 and November 1995, Michael ran a bookmaking business that took bets on professional football, basketball and baseball games, as well as college football and basketball games, Battaglia alleged.
Michael used his Burtonsville used car dealership, John Michael Auto Sales, to launder the operation’s profits, the indictment said.
His wife, Sylvia Michael, was indicted for filing false tax returns, while his daughter, Maria Elena Michael, was indicted as a co-defendant in the gambling and money-laundering operations and faces charges on filing false tax returns.
His accountant, Fabian Kwiatek of Silver Spring, was indicted for assisting in filing false tax returns.
Six others face charges that could bring up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines for their alleged involvement in a gambling operation that officials said handled more than $2,000 a day.
Attorneys for Michael and his daughter said they would both plead not guilty.
Sylvia Michael could not be reached at her house. Kwiatek did not return phone calls.
The federal government is seeking to confiscate $200,000 in gambling proceeds from Michael, along with his Silver Spring home.
In addition, he faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison for each of the four counts of filing false income tax returns; up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the gambling charges; and up to 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine for the money laundering charges.
According to the 22-count indictment, most bets were received by telephone at a series of locations, including Michael’s auto dealership and a Silver Spring beauty salon.
The investigation was conducted jointly by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division and the Montgomery County Police Department.
The case is tentatively scheduled to be heard Aug. 19 by Judge Alexander Williams of the U.S. District Court in Greenbelt. -30-