Quote:
A professional hockey player pleaded guilty Monday to being part of an illegal sports betting business that took wagers from other players.
Under an agreement with federal prosecutors, Nathan Paetsch will be sentenced to probation, 400 hours of community service and eight months of home confinement. He also must forfeit $265,000.
Paetsch, 32, played the last three seasons in the American Hockey League. Before that, he spent part of five seasons with the National Hockey League's Buffalo Sabres, through 2010.
He was involved with a gambling operation that took bets through offshore websites, authorities said, placing wagers himself and receiving credit when he recruited fellow players and others to bet.
Two principals of the operation, brothers Mark and Joseph Ruff, of Connecticut, were sentenced this year to nine years and just under 3 1/2 years in prison, respectively, after pleading guilty to illegal gambling and other charges. A third man, Paul Borrelli, of Rochester, is awaiting sentencing.
Paetsch's attorney said the player's involvement in the business was minimal, and neither he nor the hockey players he introduced to the operation ever bet on hockey.
I guess this is why Bryan Micon will return to Las Vegas.