West Palm Beach Man Sentenced to 71 Months in Prison on Money Laundering, Gambling, Prostitution, and Tax Evasion Charges

MIAMI — On Dec. 6, Dion De Cesare, 54, of West Palm Beach, Florida was sentenced to 71 months in prison for operating an illegal sports gambling business, conspiring to commit money laundering, using a facility of interstate commerce to carry on prostitution activities, and tax evasion. As part of his sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Robin L. Rosenberg ordered De Cesare to pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $$1,046,224.19.The Government is seeking approximately $10,000,000 in the forfeiture of numerous items and money, including two residential properties, two commercial properties, a storage facility, five condos, six vehicles, and a Rolex watch. The Court will hold a forfeiture hearing at a later date.

In a previous hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce E. Reinhart, De Cesare admitted that from around April 2008 to November 2022, he owned two social clubs: Whispers All Girls Staff and NXT. During various times, the businesses provided an array of prostitution services to its customers. De Cesare collected the proceeds from those businesses and laundered them through third party bank accounts and the payment of mortgages and expenses owed on several of his properties in West Palm Beach.  

De Cesare also admitted that from about May 20, 2015 to October 2022, De Cesare also operated an online sports gambling business through a website whose server was located in Costa Rica. De Cesare laundered the gambling proceeds by having the gamblers send their debt payments to third party individuals and entities for De Cesare’s benefit.  From 2011 to 2017, De Cesare owned Renegades, a restaurant and nightclub in West Palm Beach. From various times between 2011 and 2013, and from 2015 to 2016, De Cesare failed to pay personal and payroll taxes.

U.S Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami; Sheriff Ric Bradshaw of Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO); and Special Agent in Charge Matthew D. Line of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement. 

HSI West Palm Beach Office, PBSO, and IRS-CI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Dispoto and Trial Attorney Francesca Bartolomey of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting it. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicole Grosnoff and Raemy Charest-Turken are handling asset forfeiture.

You may find related court documents and information on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 21-cr-80188.

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