Congressman's Wife To Testify In Online Gambling Trial

US Congressman John Tierney's wife Patricia is set to be called as a witness in an online gambling trial of her brother Daniel Eremian.

Ms. Tierney was previously called into federal court to testify about her brother's connection to the alleged gambling ring. Daniel Eremian and co-defendant Todd Lyons face federal charges of money laundering, operating an illegal gambling business and racketeering.

The government contends that the two defendants ran an illegal gambling ring for 13 years that amassed more than $22 million, while employing dozens of people to conduct the elicit activities. The feds also contend that $10 million was put into a Massachusetts bank account used by Patricia Tierney.

Speaking about the case, US District Attorney Fred M. Wyshak Jr. said, “You will see that this is an organization that day in, day out, for almost 15 years engaged in the same criminal activity, over and over again. This is your (typical criminal) organization stretching from Massachusetts to Florida, Belize and Antigua, and it’s about making money.”

The defense is contending that the gambling operation run by the defendants was in Antigua, and is very different than illegal street gambling. They also say that there is no proof that the defendants knew that online gambling is illegal or that they took bets in person.