More than $2.8 million in unlawfully retained bingo profits has been returned to 10 Okaloosa County charities following criminal asset forfeiture actions, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida, which announced the distribution Thursday.
- The funds were forfeited from Larry and Dixie Masino, who were federally prosecuted and sentenced for illegal gambling and money laundering charges related to their ownership and operation of Racetrack Bingo in Fort Walton Beach, according to the announcement.
“Victims of crime too often suffer losses at the hands of criminals that cannot ever be restored, but my office is committed to taking action to ensure those offenders cannot reap or retain the benefits of their wrongdoing,” said U.S. Attorney John P. Heekin. “This multi-million dollar recovery by my office and remission to victim charities will have a meaningful impact on our community.”
The Masinos operated what appeared to be charitable bingo games while actually conducting illegal gambling and keeping substantial proceeds for themselves, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Between 2006 and 2015, they personally retained and laundered over $5.8 million in illegal gambling profits that should have gone to charities or been returned to players as prizes, the office said.
- They made Racetrack Bingo appear to be running charitable bingo games that would provide proceeds to local non-profit organizations, according to prosecutors. Instead, they pocketed the money for personal use.
As part of their sentences, the Masinos were ordered to forfeit substantial sums seized from bank accounts and three real properties. The forfeited assets were converted to over $2.8 million and distributed among member organizations of Fort Walton Beach Charities LLC, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
The recipient organizations include:
- The ARC of the Emerald Coast
- Boys and Girls Club of the Emerald Coast
- Emerald Coast Science Center
- Habitat for Humanity in Okaloosa County
- Horizons Foundation of Okaloosa County
- Mental Health Association of Okaloosa and Walton Counties
- Northwest Florida Ballet
- Northwest Florida Fair Association
- Okaloosa County Festival Association
- Order Sons of Italy in America, Joseph B. Franzalia Lodge 2422
“After all these years of investigation and legal battles, I am thrilled to see these forfeited funds returned to the deserving charities of Okaloosa County,” said Sheriff Eric Aden. “This long-awaited justice not only holds the perpetrators accountable but also restores vital resources to organizations that uplift our community.”
Special Agent in Charge Ron Loecker of the IRS Criminal Investigation Tampa Field Office said the Masinos “betrayed charities providing important services to their communities” through financial fraud.
- “I am proud of the work IRS Criminal Investigation special agents, our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, along with the U.S. Attorney’s Office did to ensure these charities were made whole again,” Loecker said.
The forfeiture resulted from a joint investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Alicia H. Forbes prosecuted the case.
The Department of Justice’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section approved the remission of forfeited funds to the victim charities through the agency’s Asset Forfeiture Program victim compensation process.
2 Responses
Are there no animal charities that qualified for any of these funds?
I know! How were these charities selected, not to say they aren’t deserving, but ALL of the animal shelters are suffering financially.