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Dan Bilzerian's company accused of fraud, his father is also accused
We recently brought you a two-part article on the life of Dan Bilzerian, in which we gave you a closer look at the playboy poker player who claims to have won tens of millions of dollars playing private cash games.
However, these claims have been disputed by many, leaving the question of where Dan got so much money hanging in the air. It was rumored that his father Paul, who was a corporate takeover specialist in the past, was behind it. However, in 1989, he was convicted on nine securities-related counts and received a four-year prison sentence, of which he served only 13 months. Dan's father, Paul Bilzerian, was ordered by the court to pay the state $62.3 million, which he never paid, claiming he had no money.
In the many years since the incident, his son Dan Bilzerian has taken to social media to showcase his millionaire life, expensive cars, guns, private jets, luxury real estate and yachts. Everyone then started to wonder where he got the money for this luxurious lifestyle. Immediately his father's name came up, but Dan claimed that his trust fund, which was supposed to be worth over $96 million, was only worth $1.5 million, and he made all the money playing private poker cash games with millionaires and billionaires. In total, he said, he should have won more than $50 million just by playing poker.
New information could bring more answers
On Thursday, Paul Bilzerian, Ignite and Scott Rohleder were indicted by a California grand jury on fraud charges. The CEO of Ignite is just Dan Bilzerian, and Scott Rohleder is the family's longtime accountant.
Federal investigators allege that Paul Bilzerian allegedly used Ignite to hide some of the money he owed for decades to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). But Dan's father has claimed for years that he is broke and therefore cannot pay anything to the state. But investigators say he's allegedly not broke and, according to the indictment, Paul Bilzerian, Ignite and Scott Rohleder allegedly conspired to prevent the SEC from collecting the judgment through shell companies.
What are the charges?
Paul Bilzerian left the U.S. years ago and lives in St. Kitts and Nevis. For years, he did everything he could to avoid paying his debt to the state, which now totals more than $180 million. The Justice Department says he has transferred millions of dollars to Ignite International Brands Ltd. with the help of his accountant Rohleder over the past six years alone. The transfer was allegedly through a shell company.
Prosecutors also allege that although Dan Bilzerian is the official CEO of Ignite, his father and Rohleder allegedly oversaw operations, strategy, marketing and fundraising. When Paul learned that federal authorities were aware of his involvement in Ignite, the firm issued a report listing Paul Bilzerian and Scott Rohleder only as "unpaid consultants."
Prosecutors also allege that Ignite's owners misled their investors by inflating Ignite's sales numbers. They provided false statements to authorities about the company's fourth-quarter 2020 earnings, inflating its sales by including unsold inventory stored at another business. As a result, the company's stock price allegedly increased from 42 cents to $1.20 per share in January 2021, representing a market gain of approximately $84 million. A few months later, Ignite allegedly reported fictitious sales of $4.6 million worth of vape products to a fictitious company controlled by Paul Bilzerian. Bilzerian and Rohleder allegedly backdated the sale to make it look like it took place back in 2020.
Finally, Rohleder allegedly assisted in the preparation of Dan Bilzerian's tax returns, which contained false and fraudulent statements that caused the state to lose $1.5 million in taxes. Rohleder had falsely characterized Dan's Las Vegas mansion, which he purchased back in 2018 for $8.5 million, as a rental property. But in listing the address on his tax returns, Rohleder used the address of a hangar at an international airport. Rohleder also allegedly lied when he said the November 2018 sale of Ignite stock was a long-term capital gain, instead of a short-term capital gain, but that would then result in a higher tax. Interestingly, this Las Vegas headquarters was recently put up for sale by Dan at a price of $25 million.
Paul Bilzerian and Ignite have been charged with defrauding the United States and with wire fraud. Rohleder faces charges of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and aiding and abetting the preparation of false tax returns. If convicted of all charges, they would face up to 5 years in prison for each conspiracy count and up to 20 years for each fraud count. Rohleder would face up to 3 years in prison for each tax fraud count.
This could shed more light for all of us as to where Dan Bilzerian got so much money. Currently Dan is not on the list of defendants, although the indictment referred to Paul Bilzerian's son by the acronym "DB". However, since the accused is Ignite, and Dan was its official CEO, it is questionable what else the investigators will come up with, and whether Dan will also be on the list of the accused. The indictment date has been set for October 28, 2024.
U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada also weighed in on the entire case, stating, "This indictment alleges long-standing criminal conduct to evade a regulatory agency's ruling, mislead investors, and defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). My office will continue to use all available tools to protect investors and ensure the safety of the country's economy."
Source - pokernews, latimes.com, aol.com, casino.org, mfncristianbarros.substack.com, greenrush.com, regtechtimes.com, lasvegas review-journal, justice.gov, sec.gov