Poker Pro Justin “BoostedJ” Smith Facing 5 Years In Prison

Justin “BoostedJ” Smith is one of poker’s most talented young pros, with the California resident having amassed $2,149,387 in live tournament winnings since 2008, as well as a further $300,394 playing online under the screen name Boosted J. In addition, the 25 year-old has earned a small fortune playing high-stakes cash games at levels of up to $4,000/$8,000.
However, the fortunes of the 25 year-old pro may be about to change dramatically as he now faces the prospect of up to 5 years in prison for his involvement in an illegal sports bets operation that was busted by FBI agents earlier this year. In total, 34 people were arrested as part of the sting which targeted the offshore operation with alleged ties to the Russian mob, and as FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge George Venizelos explained at the time:
“Today’s charges demonstrate the scope and reach of Russian organized crime. One of the principal defendants is a notorious Russian ‘thief-in-law’ allegedly directing an international conspiracy through Cyprus to the U.S. The defendants are alleged to have handled untold millions in illegal wagers placed by millionaires and billionaires, laundered millions, and in some cases are themselves multimillionaires. Crime pays only until you are arrested and prosecuted.”
For his part, Justin Smith allegedly helped place sports wagers through the illegal operation and is expected to plead guilty to the charges on September 4th when the case is brought to court. Nevertheless, Smith is not the only poker pro to be charged following the sting, with other players also awaiting their case including Edward Ting, Abe Mosseri, Bill Edler, Vadim Trincher, Peter Feldman, Arthur Azen and John Hanson.
However, Arthur Azen faces the stiffest penalty of up to 115 years behind bars, followed by John Hanson (92 years) and Vadim Trincher (90 years).