Robert “Bobby” Dominic, a Chicago man with ties to the Chicago Outfit, was sentenced on Friday to two years’ probation in a federal tax fraud case linked to the sweepstakes gaming industry. He had pleaded guilty only to assisting in or advising the preparation of a false tax return, after earlier charges accused him of conspiracy to defraud the United States, tax evasion and failing to file tax returns.
U.S. District Judge Elaine E. Bucklo imposed the sentence and credited the time Dominic had already spent on pretrial release. In court, the deal also skipped the usual presentence investigation, an unusual step that assistant U.S. attorney Richard Rothblatt said was justified because Dominic is 72, is a first-time offender and prosecutors concluded there was no actual tax loss to the Internal Revenue Service.
The case centered on the government’s claim that sweepstakes companies paid about $1.4 million to sham businesses Dominic used to conceal income. The original indictment said two companies paid nearly $900,000 to one bogus business between October 2014 and January 2020, and that Dominic later routed more than $500,000 through another business in 2020 and 2021.
Prosecutors also said Dominic used nominees to receive income on his behalf and steered them into arrangements meant to hide that income. The Tribune reported that, in his plea agreement, Dominic admitted directing his wife, identified as Individual B, to prepare corporate tax returns for Company A in 2021 and 2022 that did not disclose his ownership interest.
Those returns, prosecutors said, were timely filed and the corporate taxes were paid on time. They also said any personal income taxes owed by Individual B were paid in later years, and on Friday they said Dominic did not owe the IRS any money.
The plea avoided a trial that had been set for later in 2026. The case was an offshoot of a broader investigation into sweepstakes gaming machines that also brought down former state representative Luis Arroyo and businessman James Weiss.
