Ex-NBA Star Gilbert Arenas Arrested for Illegal Poker Games
Former NBA great Gilbert Arenas has been arrested in connection with illegal high-stakes poker games that he allegedly hosted at his mansion in Encino, California. He was detained on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. Gilbert was arraigned that same day and pleaded not guilty to the charges. Arenas was released on $50,000 bond, and his trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 23.
About the Suspected Gambling Activities
In a press release dated July 30, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California described the activities that led to the arrest of not only Gilbert Arenas but also five other defendants.
Gilbert ArenasArenas, who is also identified in documents as “Agent Zero,” stands accused of renting out his property to the five others being charged so that they could organize and manage high-stakes poker events. And these evenings are properly described as “events” and not merely games.
You see, these games supposedly featured chefs, valets, and security guards hired to give the participants enjoyable and safe experiences. Young women were hired who received gratuities for serving drinks and performing massages. They even allegedly “provided companionship to the poker players” in exchange for tips, whatever that means.
Though there were several games spread, the most prominent one seems to have been Pot Limit Omaha. The pots were raked, and this is how the house made money from the players. Prosecutors contend that these games took place between September 2021 and July 2022.
For his role in this enterprise, Gilbert Arenas faces one count of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business, one count of operating an illegal gambling business, and one count of making false statements to federal investigators. Each of these three counts carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, so Gilbert could possibly be sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment.
Encino Mansion Owned by Gilbert ArenasOther Defendants
Besides Arenas, five others are facing charges in connection with this case.
Yevgeni Gershman, 49, of Woodland Hills, was the one who hired the young women to work during the games. He's an Israeli citizen – suspected of being a higher-up in organized crime rings – who allegedly entered into a fake marriage to expedite his residence in the United States. He faces counts of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business, operating an illegal gambling business, conspiracy to commit marriage fraud, marriage fraud, and making a false statement on an immigration document.
Ievgen Krachun, a 43-year-old from Tarzana, was a chip runner during the games. He tracked wins and losses for the players, distributed chips, and paid employees. He faces one count of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business and one count of operating an illegal gambling business.
Three other individuals allegedly managed the games together with Gershman. They each face counts of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business and operating an illegal gambling business. The three of them are:
- Evgenni Tourevski, 48, from Tarzana, who supposedly handled finding dealers
- Allan Austria, 52, from West Hills, who allegedly took care of security
- Yarin Cohen, 27, from Tarzana, who authorities said maintained financial info and kept data regarding rake collected and expenses
What Does the Law Say?
Though all the defendants are facing federal charges regarding gambling, the courts rely on state law to determine what is or isn't illegal gambling. Therefore, we've decided to examine the California Criminal Code to see what it says about this topic. Here's a part of section 337j:
(a) It is unlawful for any person, as owner, lessee, or employee, whether for hire or not, either solely or in conjunction with others, to do any of the following without having first procured and thereafter maintained in effect all federal, state, and local licenses required by law:
(1) To deal, operate, carry on, conduct, maintain, or expose for play in this state any controlled game.
(2) To receive, directly or indirectly, any compensation or reward or any percentage or share of the revenue, for keeping, running, or carrying on any controlled game.
(3) To manufacture, distribute, or repair any gambling equipment within the boundaries of this state, or to receive, directly or indirectly, any compensation or reward for the manufacture, distribution, or repair of any gambling equipment within the boundaries of this state. (b) It is unlawful for any person to knowingly permit any controlled game to be conducted, operated, dealt, or carried on in any house or building or other premises that he or she owns or leases, in whole or in part, if that activity is undertaken by a person who is not licensed as required by state law, or by an employee of that person.
We can see that the five co-defendants (other than Arenas) could get in trouble for operating a controlled game under 337j(a)(1) and for receiving money from the same under 337j(a)(2). Arenas could be found guilty under 337j(b) for knowingly allowing his house to be used for such activities.
Of course, all of these provisions are dependent on the definition of “controlled game.” Fortunately, another part of 337j explains exactly what a controlled game is:
(e) (1) As used in this section, “controlled game” means any poker or Pai Gow game, and any other game played with cards or tiles, or both, and approved by the Department of Justice, and any game of chance, including any gambling device, played for currency, check, credit, or any other thing of value that is not prohibited and made unlawful by statute or local ordinance.
(2) As used in this section, “controlled game” does not include any of the following:
(A) The game of bingo conducted pursuant to Section 326.3 or 326.5.
(B) Parimutuel racing on horse races regulated by the California Horse Racing Board.
(C) Any lottery game conducted by the California State Lottery.
(D) Games played with cards in private homes or residences, in which no person makes money for operating the game, except as a player.
It's clear from this text that poker is definitely a controlled game. Interestingly, there's an exception for home games where there's no house taking a cut of the proceeds. However, given that the defendants are believed to have raked the games, this line of defense would not likely prove fruitful for them.
On to the penalties for violating this law:
(d) Any person who violates, attempts to violate, or conspires to violate this section shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year or by a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by both imprisonment and fine. A second offense of this section is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for a period of not more than one year or in the state prison or by a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by both imprisonment and fine.
We see here that breaking this law is punishable by fines and/or imprisonment for not longer than a year. However, this is the penalty for breaking California law. Because the federal government has stepped in, the defendants are almost certainly being charged with violations of 18 U.S. Code § 1955, part of which reads:
(a)Whoever conducts, finances, manages, supervises, directs, or owns all or part of an illegal gambling business shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
(b)As used in this section—
(1)“illegal gambling business” means a gambling business which—
(i)is a violation of the law of a State or political subdivision in which it is conducted;
(ii)involves five or more persons who conduct, finance, manage, supervise, direct, or own all or part of such business; and
(iii)has been or remains in substantially continuous operation for a period in excess of thirty days or has a gross revenue of $2,000 in any single day.
This ups the ante to imprisonment for as long as five years.
Gilbert Arenas Reacts
Following the arraignment on July 30, Arenas' attorney, Jerome Friedberg, said, “At this point in the case, he is presumed innocent, right? He has the same right as any other citizen to that presumption, and that's how he should be treated.”
Arenas himself was more exuberant, releasing a video on X where he danced down the steps of the courthouse saying, “Can't hold me, baby; they can't hold me”:
Gilbert Arenas a Confirmed Dumbass?
We here at Professional Rakeback are generally against anti-gambling crusades because we feel that grown people deserve to do as they wish with their own money. If several people get together consensually for the purpose of playing poker, even if one or more of them acts as the house and collects a profit, we feel that it's nobody else's business because no outside party is harmed as a result of their actions.
That said, we cannot help but be mystified and perplexed by the apparently stupid behavior of Gilbert during this whole episode. One of the charges he's facing, a count of making false statements to federal investigators, is not being levied against any of the other five defendants. The reason for this charge is because after the game was raided in July 2022, Arenas told federal officials that he knew nothing of the gambling that was being carried on in his house. However, investigators got ahold of text messages from Gilbert regarding the planning of the games, recruiting staff to work the games, security, finances, and other related matters.
The fact that police seized a giant table with “Arenas Poker Club” written in large font in the middle also doesn't help Gilbert's contention that he had nothing to do with the underground poker games.
Table Found at Arenas' Encino ResidenceFollowing his release, Gilbert went on the air in a YouTube live stream on July 31 wherein he uttered some real gems. “They took my passport. That's crazy because I've got another one,” Gilbert said. “You gotta have two. You think I'm dumb?"
An industry insider commented:
Yes, I do think you are absolutely fucking retarded, sir. One doesn't BRAG about one's PLAN B ESCAPE ROUTE when facing jail time.
Arenas, later in the same stream, revealed another idea he had for escaping imprisonment. Speaking of his co-defendants, Gilbert said, “Good luck in court because I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be there when it's time to go because I'm snitching.”
The wisdom of boasting about becoming a snitch when one of the accused supposedly has connections to organized crime is dubious. In any case, Gilbert claims to have had no knowledge of what was taking place at his mansion, so what could he possibly snitch about?
Arenas does have 1.1 million Instagram followers and close to a quarter-million subscribers on YouTube where he has developed a clownish and irreverent persona. It's possible that he's acting in a deliberatively provocative manner so as to make his content more engaging; however, he's playing a dangerous game wherein his comments could be interpreted by others in another way to his detriment.
Not Arenas' First Run-in With the Law
Gilbert has had past instances of running afoul of the law. In December 2009, he got into a dispute about debts from playing the card game booray with teammate Javaris Crittenton and brought four unloaded guns into the locker room, challenging Crittenton to choose one. Javaris responded by pulling out a loaded gun and pointing it at Arenas. Other players fled the scene.
The police and U.S. Attorney's office conducted an investigation. Eventually, Arenas pleaded guilty to a felony violation of the Washington, D.C. gun-control laws and was sentenced to two years of probation and a month in a halfway house. He was also suspended on Jan. 27, 2010 for the remainder of the season.
Then in June 2013, Gilbert was driving a pickup truck when he was pulled over by the LAPD and arrested for possession of illegal fireworks. Officers then removed several boxes of fireworks from the back of the truck. The quantity of fireworks being transported by Arenas was evidently enough that the police had to call in the bomb squad to properly dispose of them.
He seemingly learned little from these experiences as in August 2013, he gave out advice on how to avoid traffic tickets from automated cameras. He explained that you can keep the blank dealer plates on your car without ever replacing them, and that way, the cameras can't identify what car committed the infraction. Arenas explained that he had employed this strategy for four months while committing 60 violations and receiving no tickets.
Gilbert Arenas Professional Biography
Gilbert Jay Arenas, Jr. (born Jan. 6, 1982 in Tampa, FL) moved at a young age to the San Fernando Valley in California and attended high school in Los Angeles. He obtained a scholarship to the University of Arizona, where he settled into the position of point guard, and was eventually drafted by the Golden State Warriors in the 2001 NBA draft.
After two years with the Warriors, Gilbert was signed to the Wizards where he spent the majority of his NBA career, remaining with the team until 2010. It was with the Wizards that he became a big sensation, being named three times to the All-Star game.
After short stints with the Orlando Magic and Memphis Grizzlies, Arenas moved to the Shanghai Sharks for a season in the Chinese Basketball Association 2012 - 2013. He then retired from basketball.
From August 2018 to November 2023, Arenas hosted “The No Chill Podcast.” In February 2023, he started another podcast, called “Gil's Arena,” which is still active. Both podcasts have a focus on basketball. He also often appears as a guest on other sports podcasts and shows.
Gilbert and Poker
Gilbert Arenas is not just the alleged mastermind of a criminal poker ring. He's also a longtime player of the game. In 2010, he said in an interview that he played poker on his computer, but he clarified that he was just playing against the CPU and not against other players.
However, just a few years later in 2014, he was spotted at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. Not only did he take a seat in cash games against the likes of Jason Mercier and Scott Seiver, but he also entered the $10,000-buyin Main Event. Commentators praised the way he handled his chips and paid attention to the poker action.
In 2022, Gilbert appeared on the Hustler Casino Live stream where he played $100/$200/$200 PLO. The same year, he also appeared on a World Poker Tour broadcast.
No Need to Get Caught up in Underground Games
It's quite bizarre that Gilbert Arenas would get involved in these kinds of illicit games especially in the Los Angeles area, which already has plenty of great legal cardrooms, like the Commerce Casino. He had a better idea back when he used to play on his computer although we can go a step further than he did by playing online for real money against actual human opponents. There are a number of internet poker sites that allow you to do this, and it's not against the law for you, as a player, to access and play at these tables.
Perhaps the best online poker site for Californians is Ignition Poker. When you make a deposit via crypto, you'll qualify for a 150% up to $1,500 poker bonus. Click below to begin:
If you'd like to learn more about Ignition first, then you can browse over to this comprehensive Ignition Poker review. For a carefully curated list of other excellent options for Californians, look to this California online poker guide. If you reside elsewhere in the country, then perhaps this page devoted to offshore poker in the USA would appeal to you instead.
Aug. 3, 2025 – by Max Golden, Editor-in-Chief