Phil Mickelson ‘laundered money to pay his gambling debts but escaped prosecution’ says ex-gambling partner Billy Walters in latest explosive claims
- Phil Mickelson laundered money through a stockbroker to pay gambling debts
- Claim is made in a highly anticipated book by famed gambler Billy Walters
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Phil Mickelson laundered money through a stockbroker to pay his gambling debts, but ultimately escaped prosecution, according to a highly anticipated book by famed gambler Billy Walters.
Walters wrote in “Gambler: Secrets from a Life at Risk” that Mickelson turned to stockbroker Gregory Silveira to help with the transfer.
Mickelson wanted to transfer several million dollars to Silveira and then have Silveira transfer it from his personal bank account to offshore accounting to pay off Phil’s gambling losses. Unfortunately for Silveira, he said yes. The wire transfer soon caught the attention of the IRS’ criminal division,” Walters wrote.
But Walters, a sports gambler, wrote that Mickelson took advantage of the powerful people he knew, including Washington, D.C. attorney Gregory Craig. Craig had the right connections and friends, including former US Attorney General Loretta Lynch and the director of enforcement at the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Walters went to prison in 2017 after serving a 10-count count of conspiracy, securities fraud and wire fraud related to “ill-gotten gains” in trading Dean Foods stock. Walters shared inside information about some of those trades with Mickelson, who made multiple stock trades that netted him $931,000 and was forced by the SEC to pay back $1 million.
Phil Mickelson allegedly laundered money through a stockbroker to pay gambling debts
With Mickelson in the middle of a money laundering investigation and a target of an insider trading investigation, what did super-lawyer Craig do to keep prosecutors off Phil? He performed a legal trick so unlikely it was like Harry Houdini pulling a rabbit out of a hat while chained underwater.”
Mickelson decided to settle the case without admitting or denying the allegations.
“Phil was off the hook in the money laundering case,” Walters wrote. “The only person who ended up looking guilty was me.”
This is the second extract from the book, which will be published on Tuesday.
Walters also said Mickelson, a six-time big winner, had bet $1 billion on sports over 30 years
It was revealed last week that Walters wrote that Mickelson, a six-time big winner, had bet $1 billion on sports over 30 years and wanted to place a $400,000 bet on Tiger Woods at the Ryder Cup, but was barred from doing so .
Last week, Mickelson, 53, issued a statement to Golf Digest about some of Walters’ accusations, but he has to comment on the latest release.
‘I’ve never bet on the Ryder Cup. While I’m known to always enjoy a friendly bet on the court, I would never undermine the integrity of the game,” he said.
“I’ve also been very open about my gambling addiction. I’ve expressed my regret before, taken responsibility, got help, fully committed to therapy that has had a positive impact on me, and I feel good about where I am today.”