Nicholas Stella, a former Chicago police officer, was sentenced to 15 months in prison on Thursday for his involvement in an illegal gambling operation.
Stella was the third individual to receive a sentence in the case, with his punishment being the harshest so far. Eugene Del Giudice and Todd Blanken were the first two individuals sentenced, both of whom did not receive any jail time.
Blanken received a six-month sentence of society confinement, while Del Giudice was sentenced to three months of home confinement.
Casey Urlacher, brother of Brian Urlacher, was implicated in the operation, but received a full pardon from former President Donald Trump on his final day in office. Despite this, Urlacher has been re-elected as the mayor of Mettawa, Illinois.
The other plaintiffs, unfortunately, are not as fortunate. Additionally, Stella’s involvement in the gambling ring was not his only wrongdoing.
Nicholas Stella also struggled with different legal problems.
In January, prosecutors alleged that Stella had repeatedly engaged in domestic battery and violently attacked his girlfriend.
On Thursday, US District Judge Virginia Kendall referenced the incident and expressed concern over the police officer’s status, as reported by the Chicago Sun-Times.
She went on to explain that when police officials behave as if they are exempt from the law, it tarnishes their reputations. It is important for them to work diligently and with integrity in order to maintain a strong moral character.
Regarding the gambling operation, Stella worked as a bookie for Uncle Mick Sports, which prosecutors alleged generated nearly $500,000 in profits in 2018. Uncle Mick Sports was a lucrative, well-established business worth millions of dollars.
Before prosecutors could execute a search warrant, Stella destroyed his phone. He was the only defendant in the case who did not surrender his phone.
Michael Clancy, the defense attorney for Stella, claimed that he tried to return to the trash can to retrieve the phone before entering a guilty plea.
Clancy went on to write about his customer.
Stella, a gambling addict, started working for Vincent to fund his addiction. Despite making money as a bookmaker, all of it was lost to gambling. Stella and Hellip experienced losses in both sports and casino games. Living modestly, Stella did not own an expensive car or a house. Instead, he promptly returned all his earnings (and then some) to the operation’s funds.
Vincent Del Giudice, Eugene Del Giudice’s son, was in charge of the operation from 2016 to 2019. He has since pleaded guilty and is awaiting his sentencing date.
As per a previous 15-page agreement, Stella and Del Giudice divided his income evenly at 50%.
What’s the next step in the case involving Uncle Mick Sports?
The next individual set to receive a sentence is Matthew “Sweaters” Knight. Knight recruited new gamblers and collected debts from their gambling activities.
Matthew Namoff and several other defendants have not yet been sentenced, including Vincent Del Giudice, who is expected to receive the harshest punishment.
Urlacher will not receive any jail time; instead, he will continue to serve as the president of Mettawa.
