Expand / Collapse search
☰

Grady Judd: Accused ring leader behind illegal gambling house charged with money laundering

By
Published  April 3, 2025 6:30pm EDT
Winter Haven
FOX 13 News

Florida poker house money laundering case proceeds

FOX 13’s Carla Bayron reports on a Lakeland man facing money laundering charges after deputies say he was the ringleader behind an illegal gambling house.

The Brief

    • A Lakeland man is facing money laundering charges after deputies said he was the ring leader behind an illegal gambling house.
    • Undercover detectives infiltrated the high-stakes poker games and later discovered Kerr would make multiple transactions among various bank accounts.
    • Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said odds are there may be more charges to come.

LAKELAND, Fla. - A Lakeland man is facing money laundering charges after deputies said he was the ring leader behind an illegal gambling house.

James Kerr, 39, is accused of running the enterprise out of Winter Haven and making hundreds of thousands of dollars.

READ: Florida man accused of trying to cash forged check felt he was doing something ‘shady and ‘wrong’: HCSO

The backstory:

A building on Avenue D SW that used to be a law office and is now a new business, was one of the main locations where detectives said Kerr was hosting the illegal poker nights.

Booking photo of James Kerr. Courtesy: Polk County Sheriff's Office. 

After getting a tip, undercover detectives infiltrated the high-stakes poker games and later discovered Kerr would make multiple transactions among various bank accounts.

Between 2021 and 2023, detectives said Kerr tried to hide illicit earnings of more than $800,000.

Follow FOX 13 on YouTube

"Now keep in mind he's also a professional gambler," said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd. "If you search him up online, you'll see he's won a lot of money legally gambling, but guess what, he became greedy and decided to set up his own illegal game. That's when he got arrested." 

Dig deeper:

During Kerr's first appearance on Tuesday, his attorney argued the state doesn't have probable cause for the charges.

Pictured: James Kerr during his first court appearance. 

"He got the legal gambling debts, and he put it inside his own bank accounts," the attorney said. "It's no different than putting your legal gambling debts in a sock. That's not the laundering, that's not the washing." 

What's next:

Judd said odds are there may be more charges to come.

MORE: Tampa Tesla thief returns to dealer to get his belongings after stealing Cybertruck during test drive: HCSO

"For those others that were gambling that have not yet been charged, the investigation's not over," he said. 

Kerr's bail was set at $60,000, and he would have to wear a GPS monitor if he posts it.

The Source: The information in this story was provided by the Polk County Sheriff's Office and gathered during his first court appearance. 

WATCH FOX 13 NEWS: 

STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 13 TAMPA:

Winter HavenCrime and Public Safety