Casino exec admits funneling cash to Indianapolis GOP, pleads guilty

On line casino government and former state lawmaker John Keeler pleaded responsible in federal court docket Monday morning to at least one depend of submitting a false tax return in reference to a scheme to secretly funnel on line casino money to a Marion County Republican Social gathering PAC.

The responsible plea got here only one hour earlier than Keeler’s federal trial was scheduled to start and per week after his co-defendant, former state Sen. Brent Waltz, pleaded responsible. 

Prosecutors agreed to drop 5 different counts towards Keeler as a part of a plea settlement. He faces as much as three years in jail, however will seemingly obtain much less underneath the deal. He will likely be required to pay restitution of $14,350, which equates to the tax losses.

His sentencing has not been scheduled but.

Keeler admits to tax fraud

The responsible plea is the newest develop in multi-year federal public corruption investigation involving New Centaur LLC, which owned Indiana’s solely horse track-casinos in Anderson and Shelbyville till 2018. Keeler was the corporate’s vp and normal counsel.

As a part of his plea deal, Keeler admitted to working with an out-of-state political marketing consultant to funnel $25,000 to the Better Indianapolis Republican Finance Committee, a political motion committee related to the Marion County Republican Social gathering. 

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On the time, in 2016, the occasion was struggling financially, in accordance with the plea deal. Keeler needed to assist, however believed Indiana legislation prohibited on line casino firm contributions.

To cover the supply of the funds, he and Maryland political marketing consultant Kelley Rogers agreed that one in every of Roger’s firm’s would ship a faux bill to New Centaur. Rogers would then contribute many of the cash to the Better Indianapolis Republican Finance Committee. 

On April 15, 2016, Rogers despatched an bill to Keeler purportedly for providers associated to New Centaur’s horse racing enterprise. Keeler licensed a $41,000 fee. He then handed the Republican finance committee’s account info to Rogers and advised Marion County occasion officers the cash was on the way in which. 

Over the following week, Rogers wired contributions totaling $25,000 to the Republican finance committee. The contributions have been funded with the cash from New Centaur, in accordance with the plea settlement. 

When New Centaur filed its taxes, it claimed the $41,000 fee as a enterprise expense, although it was really an expense associated to supporting candidates for public workplace, which isn’t deductible. 

On line casino government’s trial begins immediately:What is going to we find out about affect peddling in Indiana?

What’s subsequent

Keeler additionally had been accused of a comparable scheme to funnel greater than $40,000 in on line casino cash to Waltz’s failed U.S. Home bid in 2015, however these fees have been dropped as a part of the plea deal. 

These allegations once more concerned faux contracts between New Centaur and corporations managed by Rogers. Rogers and Waltz then recruited and paid so known as “straw donors” to contribute to Waltz’s marketing campaign in their very own names. 

Waltz pleaded responsible final week to 2 counts associated to that alleged scheme: making and receiving conduit contributions and making false statements to the FBI. 

Waltz faces as much as 10 years in jail, however like Keeler he’ll in all probability obtain a a lot lighter sentence underneath the plea deal he struck with prosecutors. His sentencing has not been scheduled but. 

The convictions towards Waltz and Keeler bring to a halt all pending instances within the investigation, nevertheless it’s not clear whether or not different prosecutions may be within the wings. 

Throughout a pre-trial listening to on Thursday, an lawyer with the U.S. Division of Justice’s public integrity part referred to Keeler’s boss, former New Centaur CEO Rod Ratcliff, as a co-conspirator. 

Ratcliff, who has not been publicly charged with any crime, is among the most influential figures in Indiana politics and has been a major contributor to former President Donald Trump and different Republicans. The Indiana Gaming Fee stripped gaming license and banned him from Indiana’s playing trade final yr.

Final week, he criticized prosecutors for calling him a co-conspirator. In a press release from his spokesman, Ratcliff mentioned he had been “falsely accused” and famous he has not been suggested that he’s a goal of any grand jury investigation. 

Contact IndyStar reporter Tony Cook dinner at 317-444-6081 or tony.cook dinner@indystar.com. Observe him on Twitter: @IndyStarTony.