"Sex, Sports & The Mob: The Atlanta Gold Club" Premieres Wednesday, December 19th On Court TV; Professional Athletes Pulled Into Sex Scandal With Mob Connections.Sports Editors NEW YORK--(BW SportsWire)--Dec. 12, 2001 Atlanta's Gold Club was one of the most successful and high profile strip clubs on the East Coast. But, when the multi-million dollar adult entertainment machine came under scrutiny by the FBI, testimony about sexual favors for celebrity athletes thrust the trial into one of the biggest sex scandals in professional sports history. On this episode of the Court TV series THE SYSTEM, Sex, Sports & The Mob: The Atlanta Gold Club (premiering Wednesday, December 19th at 10:00 PM ET/PT) explores the FBI's case against Gold Club owner Steve Kaplan, initiated in part because of his friendship with members of the Gambino crime family The Gambino Crime Family is one of the "Five Families" that controls organized crime activities based in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia (or Cosa Nostra). . Federal agents wanted to know if some of the club's $20 million dollar income was being funneled back to organized crime. When employees testified last summer that celebrities and professional basketball, baseball and football players often received sexual favors from strippers at the Gold Club, the sports world was rocked with headlines. A number of athletes were subsequently put on the stand, including Andruw Jones of the Atlanta Braves and New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Knick Patrick Ewing, testifying they had in fact been treated to "special treatment" from strippers at the Gold Club or nearby hotels. Court TV's interviews with star witnesses, including club VIP director George Kontos, Kaplan's assistant Jeanine Johnson and Gold Club waitress Hope Collie collie, breed of large, agile working dog developed in Scotland during the 17th and 18th cent. It stands from 22 to 26 in. (55.9–66 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs from 50 to 75 lb (22.7–34 kg). , depict a high-flying world of $50,000 tabs, private rooms, regular appearances by celebrities such as John Starks, Dennis Rodman, Terrell Davis, Madonna and Stephen Baldwin; and "more Perrier Jouet champagne sales than anywhere in the country." When the prosecution's plan to have Gotti, Jr. testify fell apart, New York Post The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and the oldest to have been published continually as a daily.[3] Since 1976, it has been owned by Australian-born billionaire Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation and is one of the 10 reporter Al Guart explains "they had to rely on killers, torturers, swindlers, pedophiles, strippers and yes, a couple of athletes to try and put the case together." But the athletes' testimony generated more heat over the summer than the upcoming draft picks or World Series, and Kaplan subsequently agreed to a plea bargain, pleading guilty to charges of racketeering Traditionally, obtaining or extorting money illegally or carrying on illegal business activities, usually by Organized Crime . A pattern of illegal activity carried out as part of an enterprise that is owned or controlled by those who are engaged in the illegal activity. in August 2001. His connections to the mob - detailed in surveillance tapes of Kaplan and John Gotti, Jr. and Kaplan's presence at a New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. nightclub in 1988 when Gambino family soldier Shorty short·y also short·ie Informal n. pl. short·ies 1. A person short in stature. 2. A thing of less than average size, length, extension, or duration. adj. Mascuzzio was shot and killed - and charges of credit card fraud Credit card fraud is a wide-ranging term for theft and fraud committed using a credit card or any similar payment mechanism as a fraudulent source of funds in a transaction. The purpose may be to obtain goods without paying, or to obtain unauthorized funds from an account. , prostitution, money laundering and tax evasion were never confirmed. Sex, Sports & the Mob was written and produced by Parco Productions for Court TV; John Parsons is producer. For Court TV, Anthony Horn is executive producer; Ed Hersh is Vice President of Documentaries and Specials. Court TV (www.courttv.com or AOL (A division of Time Warner, Inc., New York, NY, www.aol.com) The world's largest online information service with access to the Internet, e-mail, chat rooms and a variety of databases and services. Keyword: Court TV), a basic cable network, provides a window on the American system of justice through distinctive programming that both entertains and informs. As the destination for programming that focuses on justice and criminal investigations, Court TV broadcasts trials by day and compelling stories of the criminal justice system in the evening. Court TV is 50% owned by AOL Time Warner, and 50% owned by Liberty Media Corp. The network has over 66 million subscribers. REVIEW CASSETTES AND PRODUCER INTERVIEWS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST |
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