Phil Mickelson: Was Mafia?

The golf legend Phil Mickelson is said to have lost more than $ 500,000 by a bookmaker from the mafia. According to a report by the Detroit News, the 51-year-old golf professional is currently involved in a legal process that the connections of the dubious sports betting provider should disclose and bring clarity to the cause. Mickelson himself does not sit on the dock because he has not disregarded any regulations due to his betting placements.

Connections to the mafia

According to initial knowledge of the public prosecutor, the alleged mafia bookmaker is the infamous Don “Dandy” Deseranno, to whom the US government is very good Contacts with the American mafia group “La Cosa Nostra” said. Since he admitted a bet by Phil Mickelson in the amount of $ 500,000 in a trial of the well-known Mafiosi Anthony Giacoma in a trial against the well-known Mafiosi Anthony Giacoma, the investigators immediately focused on him. Due to his death in April 2021, however, the process of dealing with the fraud was recently complicated.

Glenn Cohen, the lawyer of Mickelson, admitted to Detroit News that Deseranno has the outstanding payments Not transferred to Mickelson until his death Has. The specific sporting events of the golf professional had bet on and what kind of betting was it was neither from the court documents nor from the US media reports.

Blackmail process. In the court proceedings from 2007, Don Deseranno acted as a crown witness of the US government and testified against his own uncle Anthony “Tony Jack” Giacalone. In return, he was granted immunity by the state prosecutor’s office. Specifically, the extortion law was about the mysterious disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa, former president of the “Teamsters” transport worker union. Anthony Giacalone was considered the main suspect because he was supposed to meet Hoffa on the day of his disappearance.

Media reports cause trouble

The media reports of the betting frame around Mickelson recently caused trouble in two ways. On the one hand, the court documents came into the possession of the press, so that the entire incident came to the public. On the other hand, the time of publication could not have been less favorable from Mickelson’s point of view. Currently the golf professional takes part in the Rocket Mortgage Classic And wants to concentrate completely on his sporting performance accordingly. However, the news about the betting fraud with connections to the mafia destroyed this project.

Again and again the golfer was asked about the circulating press reports. This caused a lot of displeasure with the 51-year-old, which was visibly Announced on the boring questions of journalists reacted. As Detroit News want, he even consider to stay away from the golf tournament in the future.

In his statement, Mickelson recorded that he Do not understand unnecessary attacks in his person and he can feel lack of appreciation. It cost him a lot of strength and time to Rocket Mortgage Classic to be able to participate. The reports about the Betting fraud Accordingly, he did not want to comment on because the incident occurred over 20 years ago.

Common bet. Glenn Cohen told the press representatives that his client and some friends had placed the bet with Don Deseranno. At the time, Mickelson did not know that this was a notorious mafiosi.

Our thing

Don Deseranno’s connections to “La Cosa Nostra” were not as well documented at the time of the betting placements as it is today. The criminal energies, which went out from the American-American mafia, were already known at the time. The North American branch of the original Sicilian “Cosa Nostra” has been up to mischief in the United States since 1900.

According to police information, more than 26 different families have been created over the decades, which were divided into different splinter groups. Although the individual families act independently of each other, a nationwide commission coordinates the goals of the mafia. This consists of the heads of the most influential families.

The gambling in all its forms has always been one of the main sources of income The “La Cosa Nostra”. Among other things, the individual families operated various card games on the streets of New York City and organized so -called “Number Games”, which were based on the principle of American lotteries.

Employment fields. In addition to gambling, the “La Cosa Nostra” concentrated on many other areas that the mafia brought in enormous money sums. Drug trade in particular ensured a constant cash flow for many decades. Other important business areas were the credit for protection, protection and prostitution. However, the latter was very controversial within the mafia because some families spoke out against these business practices.