Drake, Adin Ross, DJ Akademiks Subjects In Betting Lawsuit
A new federal lawsuit filed on Wednesday (April 22) has named rap superstar Drake, controversial streamer Adin Ross and media personality DJ Akademiks, alleging them with being involved in illegal gambling and racketeering. The suit was filed in New Jersey and also includes the online casino site Stake.us.
The plaintiff, Jason Nufio, claimed he lost money with the website and that the site violates the regulations of New Jersey. Drake has often promoted Stake on his social media platforms. The suit comes after the state passed regulations last August, making it illegal to join or participate in an online sweepstakes casino while in New Jersey.
The filing alleges that DJ Akademiks “knowingly and directly [assisting] Drake’s inflation of his streaming numbers through bot networks by publishing and promoting information that he knew to be false,” adding that he was paid by Stake’s tipping feature for doing so. The documents also allege that the Curacao-based site uses gold coins as a virtual currency, “a fig leaf to superficially avoid the appearance of illegal gambling and afford Stake a veneer of deniability.”
The Roselle, New Jersey, native and his lawyers also allege that Stake financed this scheme to boost Drake’s streaming numbers on Spotify. This is similar to a charge found in lawsuits against Drake and Ross filed in Virginia, New Mexico, and Missouri last year.
“Stake bundles every purchase of Gold Coins with a second type of token called ‘Stake Cash’ as a supposedly free bonus. Unlike Gold Coins, Stake Cash can be wagered on casino games and cashed out for real money at a fixed 1:1 ratio to the U.S. Dollar – exposing Stake Cash as a clear vehicle for real-money gambling,” the filing for the New Mexico lawsuit alleges.
The Virginia lawsuit involves multiple plaintiffs, and also named George Nguyen, an individual alleged to have facilitated the redemption of the gold coins into cryptocurrency and digital gift cards, which could be used as real money.
Nufio is seeking all the money that he lost, in addition to damages. Ross has only responded to the New Mexico lawsuit to date, calling it “f—-g bull—t.” Neither Drake nor Akademiks has responded to the most recent suit or the previous lawsuits.
Drake, Adin Ross, DJ Akademiks Subjects In Betting Lawsuit was originally published on hiphopwired.com
