Video poker king pleads guilty to gambling ring
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Western Pennsylvania's video poker kingpin, already serving a federal prison term, pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court to running another big-money gambling ring.
John "Duffy" Conley, 45, formerly of McKees Rocks, waived indictment and pleaded guilty to operating a multi-million-dollar sports-betting network in 2005 and 2006.
Mr. Conley spent nine years in prison after a 1995 conviction for running a video poker ring that earned him $15 million a year.
He went back to prison in 2006 for violating the terms of his probation in that case after his arrest on the new charges and for associating with known felons.
He is scheduled to be released on the old case this summer but now faces another five years in prison.
In the current case, federal prosecutors said an undercover investigation revealed that Mr. Conley's ring handled $3 million in wagers in under a month in 2005 and involved casinos in Costa Rica and the United Kingdom.
Mr. Conley will be sentenced Aug. 7.
First Published May 6, 2009 12:00 am
