Online gamblers are wondering whether they'll get their money back after a judge's temporary restraining order forced BetOnSports PLC to disable its Web site. Players now have no access to their
accounts, some of which have thousands of dollars. Said one New Jersey gambler: "I just can't get past how much I could lose." The online wagering company is faced with a 22-count indictment on fraud
and racketeering charges The company's former CEO remains in prison in the U.S. after being arrested while changing planes in Dallas. U.S. prosecutors want a forfeiture of $4.5 billion from David
Carruthers, the firm's former chief executive, and 10 others associated with the gambling operation. U.S. Attorney Catherine Hathaway said last month's federal restraining order requires that
BetOnSports return any money its U.S. customers have tied up with the site. That order expires Monday, but could e extended. In illegal betting scandals, the government has the right to seize the
money to settle legal claims in the same way it takes money from drug cartels. An executive at BetOnSports claimed that "customers will get their money." Nearly all wagers received on the site came
from the U.S. The company had more than 71,000 active customers who placed 9.9 million bets. The average wager was $109; prosecutors said 97 percent of sports bets were made on American football,
basketball or baseball. Experts say that bettors will never prosecuted, because the 1961 Wire Act makes it illegal to be in the gambling business accepting bets--not placing wagers.
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