Former Florida nightclub owner Dion De Cesare has been sentenced to 71 months in federal prison for running an illegal sports gambling operation and other related charges. De Cesare, 54, owned the once-popular Renegades nightclub in West Palm Beach and other entertainment establishments in the state.
De Cesare ran an online sports-betting website hosted on servers in Costa Rica between May 2015 and October 2022. He laundered the gambling proceeds by directing gamblers to send debt payments to third-party people and entities.
In June, De Cesare pleaded guilty to multiple counts, including operating an illegal sports gambling business, conspiring to commit money laundering, using a facility of interstate commerce to carry on prostitution activities and evading tax. The sentencing by U.S. District Court Judge Robin L. Rosenberg also included an order for De Cesare to pay more than $1 million in restitution to the IRS.
Additionally, the government is seeking the forfeiture of an array of De Cesare’s assets, estimated at about $10 million, including residential and commercial properties, storage facilities, condos, vehicles, a Rolex watch and $93,000 in criminal proceeds. De Cesare will keep his $2 million mansion.
De Cesare operated two social clubs, Whispers All Girls Staff and NXT, between April 2008 and November 2022. According to prosecutors, these establishments also provided prostitution services. The Department of Justice reported that De Cesare laundered proceeds from these businesses through third-party bank accounts and used them to pay mortgages and other expenses on his properties in West Palm Beach.
De Cesare also owned the Renegades nightclub from 2011 to 2017 and was accused of failing to pay personal and payroll taxes between 2011 and 2016. His arrest and the subsequent investigation involved multiple agencies, including Homeland Security, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office and IRS.
De Cesare’s illegal activities were brought to light in January 2019 after a tip from a confidential source, leading to his arrest in May 2019 at Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport.
