Vegas Dave Maintains Innocence As He Faces 19 Federal Charges

The professional gambler known as Vegas Dave maintains he is not guilty of nearly two dozen federal charges handed up in an indictment last week by a federal grand jury. Dave Oancea is accused of using phony Social Security numbers and causing casinos to file fraudulent reports to the federal government.

"Vegas Dave strongly maintains his innocence and is shocked that his betting success in which he has paid large amounts of taxes has led the government to improperly charge him," his lawyer, Thomas Pitaro. said.

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Oancea is a gambler who claims to have won multi-million dollar future bets on both the Kansas City Royals and Denver Broncos winning championships. He has more than 150,000 followers on Twitter.

The indictment says that he used either Social Security numbers that were fake or belonged to someone else while making nine bets at the Wynn Las Vegas and Westgate casinos.

The bets totaled more than $1.3 million and were placed between Feb. 6, 2015 and Feb 2, 2016. By using Social Security numbers that were not his, prosecutors say, he sought to avoid reporting requirements.

The federal government also wants Oancea to forfeit $500,000.

Oancea "is extremely confident he will overcome these false allegations and be proven innocent by a Las Vegas jury," his lawyers said.

Oancea will be allowed to continue his gambling business while he awaits trial, which is expected to begin in June.

Photo via Vegas Dave