[Illusion]

VIRGINIA - Dennis Ray Maki didn't steal more than $400,000 to live an extravagant lifestyle, his defense attorney said Monday.

Maki, 50, of Eveleth, didn't use the stolen money to buy a fancier car, pay off his home mortgage or buy a place on Lake Vermilion.

"The closest Mr. Maki got to having a place on Lake Vermilion was sitting by a slot machine and looking out the window at Fortune Bay (Resort Casino)," Eveleth defense attorney Bruce Williams said after a plea hearing in St. Louis County District Court.

Maki told Judge Gary Pagliaccetti that he spent the money gambling at Fortune Bay Resort Casino in Tower and the Black Bear Casino in Carlton.

The defendant pleaded guilty to three counts of theft of corporate property from the Range Mental Health Center Inc. in Virginia, the Eveleth Youth Hockey Association and the Eveleth Elks Lodge.

Under the terms of a plea agreement Williams reached with the St. Louis County Attorney's office, Maki would serve a 33-month prison sentence and pay $400,117 in restitution.

Pagliaccetti deferred accepting the plea until a probation officer's investigation of Maki's background can be completed. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 4.

Williams called his client "an extremely remorseful man" with a gambling addiction. He said Maki was declining public comment.

"He understands the severity of his actions," Williams said. "He doesn't minimize it. He's embarrassed about it. It's something he doesn't forget about on a daily basis. Believe me, there are a number of people out there that send him text messages and put mail in his mailbox that don't let him forget about this."

Maki's thefts came to light in February when $38,991.31 in Eveleth Youth Hockey Association money was unaccounted for. Maki had been the secretary-treasurer of the hockey association for six or seven years, he said. He pleaded guilty to the theft of at least $26,000 from the association.

When Williams asked his client if he had violated his position of trust, Maki said, "Yes, very much so."

Three months after being charged with the hockey theft, Maki was charged with stealing more than $338,000 from Range Mental Health Center, where he had worked for 29 years. His job included receiving money from supervised work-release patrons who stayed at the center.

"A lot of times when they paid by cash, I would give them the receipt and keep the cash," Maki told Pagliaccetti.

When Williams asked Maki where the money went, he replied, "Mostly to the casino."

Williams told Pagliaccetti that Maki has a $31,000 vested pension from Range Mental Health Center that he would like to use to pay back the Eveleth Youth Hockey Association.

Maki's third theft became public in September when he was accused of stealing $36,051 from the Eveleth Elks Lodge, where he was formerly the gambling manager.

Maki's total restitution is $400,117. Williams said his client has another job, which he declined to disclose. He expects Maki to make a good-faith effort at paying back the money he stole.

"He doesn't take the attitude, 'I got caught. So what?' " Williams said. "This is a small community and he wants to try to pay back the victims for what he did."

"I think it was a fair and reasonable solution," said Karl Sundquist, assistant St. Louis County attorney, who prosecuted the case. "This is a gentleman who basically had no criminal history going into this. He was a person who was basically respected and liked by the workers and organizations he was with, but because of gambling he ended up in this situation."

Maki has gone through a gambling assessment, is involved in a treatment program and attends Gamblers Anonymous, Williams said.

Williams has had other clients who have committed crimes linked with gambling addictions, and he expects to have more.

"There's people out there right now that are doing this," he said. "They're working at a bank. They're working for a municipality. It's happening more and more frequently."

What can be done for those who get in over their heads?

"Get help immediately," Williams said. "Come clean and start correcting your path, because you're not going to win the money back. You're just chasing your losses."

[pags11]

a very sad story...

[JoshW]

Guy even worked at a mental health clinic for over 25 years and still couldn't stop himself from gambling. Shows almost anyone could get addicted, never know.

[tacomax]

Wow, a gambling story involving a family friendly casino resort. I thought it was only the offshore establishments that promote misery and the breakdown of society.

[Senator7]

How do people get to this point, especially with games where the house has such an obvious and decided edge? I can't feel sorry for people who play slots, blackjack, roulette, or craps and then complain when they lose everything. Stick to the sportsbook and the poker room if you want to have any chance at making money.

[Quarm]

aye, and the worst thing about Crackjack&Co. is: its so ****ing boring...it may be fun with friends in RL, but shoot me if i ever play those games for my money (intercasinos bonus is an exception, but i hate playing even that atm) in an online casino ^^

[tacomax]

When you're addicted to gambling I doubt that a negative player edge is going to stop you taking your life savings to the casino.

Incidentally quite a few games do have positive player edges such as some types of full-pay video poker and also progressive slots which have jackpots over a certain level.

[Montreal514]

It's about the same story as the movie "Owning Mahoney"...

[mad]

We had a guy over here in a very prominent position within a large transportation company. He was arrested and charged with stealing 5 or 6 million from the company to gamble with. Then, as if that wasn't enough he kept taking more, making larger wagers trying to win it all back. In the end he's serving a long prison sentence now, sad though.

[pags11]

I saw a guy that was friends with Dick Vermeil that had a similar problem...really too bad that it gets so out of hand for these guys...

[natrass]

Not to be overtly cynical but I believe its a well known scam to explain where all the money has gone.

Maybe not this case, but often some fraud gets caught and the police ask for the cash back and he can just pipe up he blew it gambling.

Then come out of prison (which youd do anyway) with a nice little nest egg.

[Betman]

I feel no sympathy for this man whatsoever.

Come on now. Whatever happened to our presumed ability to tell the difference between right and wrong ?

I have a severe addiction to caffeine. Does that mean that I will break into a store at night to feed my addiction should I run out of coffee ?

Of course not. Common sense would kick in.

This guy is an idiot and he deserves what he got. We can't grant compassion for those who hide their sins and selfishness behind excuses such as addiction and all that nonsense.

[JoshW]

Originally Posted by pags11

I saw a guy that was friends with Dick Vermeil that had a similar problem...really too bad that it gets so out of hand for these guys...

Likely the former owner of the Eagles Leonard Tose. He died pretty much broke because of gambling. Lost 50 million to the casinos in the 80s.

[pags11]

natrass, I had never thought of that...

lakersfan, yeah, that's the guy...

[BrentCrude]

In the past 18 years since Minnesota legalized Indian gaming,charitable pull tab gambling in bars and the state lottery it's almost an everyday occurrence in the news that someone get's caught embezzling money.The people when they get caught say it's a disease that they have and that's why they did it.It's like they were outside raking leaves and all of a sudden a spore or virus just happens to infect them like someone sneezing near them and causing them to catch a cold.Anytime someone says that they have a disease when it comes to compulsive gambling I just laugh and think to myself that they are copping out.They should just come to terms saying they enjoy being an idiot when it comes to mindlessly pouring stolen money in a machine that they know can never pay them back a fraction of what they lost.Playing slots,the lottery and pull tabs isn't gambling,it's just suckers too dumb to know they are getting ripped off donating tax and charity money.

What hypocrites the states are when they bash sportsbooks when they sell lottery tickets with as high as a 50% takeout besides the winner having to pay taxes on the winnings.Then the states let the Indians run casinos on busy interstate freeways an hour away from their isolated reservation.Another under the table pay off from the casino lobbyists to the slimy hack politicians.

The genie is out of the bottle as far as legalized gambling goes where we can never repeal it.The overspending government just loves the tax revenew gambling brings in.It's a joke when politicians act astonished by people who can't afford losing money gambling doing things like embezzling where they say they can put controls on gambling.Gambling is all over including here on the internet so instead of politicians like Senator Kyll from Arizona trying to ban sportsbooks he should tell the people who steal money and say they have a compulsive gambling disease to take responsibility and tell them they aren't children the government should have to look after.God forbid someone play online poker or bet at a sportsbook where they actually stand a chance to win money.

[pags11]

yeah, there seem to be more and more stories like these surfacing...I'm not sure that I'm buying it though...