Finder of Saroyan’s Oscar Named as Figure in Betting Probe

A pawnshop owner, who last year found the Oscar statuette belonging to the late William Saroyan, allegedly laundered money for the nation’s largest sports betting operation, FBI officials said.

Darryl Kaplan was a “mover of monies for the bookmakers,” according to an FBI affidavit filed in connection with local searches that led to the charges last month against the alleged leader of the gambling ring and 15 others.

Kaplan, owner of Mission Jewelry and Loan, has not been charged in connection with the inquiry of the alleged ring based in the Dominican Republic.

“Yes, I’m a gambler, but I’m no bookmaker,” Kaplan said in an interview. He said he has bet with more than a dozen bookies and is friends with some.

He said the government misunderstood his legitimate check-cashing and money-lending business.

According to FBI records, Kaplan handled more than $80 million in suspicious transactions over the past seven years.

FBI records include wiretaps of Kaplan’s phone in which he said gambling was the “world’s greatest business” and that he kept money in “rice bags.”