Minnesota brothers charged in TikTok livestream gambling scheme

More charges, including a felony count, were filed Monday against a Twin Cities man who is accused of roaming Twin Cities-area casinos and playing slots for gamblers who paid to have their bets placed, then watched live on TikTok in hopes of striking it rich.

Blake C. Fitzgerald, 40, of Farmington, is now facing a felony charge in Goodhue County of instructing others to violate gambling laws along with three related gross misdemeanor counts. A conviction on the felony count could send Fitzgerald to prison, rather than jail or some other lesser form of detention.

Also Monday, additional gross misdemeanor illegal gambling counts were filed in Goodhue County against Fitzgerald's brother, Christopher J. Mattison, 34, of Warren, Minn.

In August, Fitzgerald was charged with three gross misdemeanors in connection with allegations he ran a remote bookie business for at least four months until January 2023 while at Mystic Lake Casino in the Scott County city of Prior Lake or Treasure Island Resort & Casino just outside of Red Wing in Goodhue County. Mattison was charged as well back in August.

Both men were charged by summons and declined to comment Monday to the Star Tribune about the latest round of charges. Fitzgerald is due on court on Wednesday, followed by Mattison on Thursday.

The new complaints note that a state investigator with the state Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division contacted Fitzgerald and Mattison in June about the initial charges. Mattison denied the allegations, while Fitzgerald asked the investigator for further specifics and then stopped responding to the agent.

Monday's criminal complaints not only cover in greater detail the allegations spelled out in the earlier charges, they also reveal that the brothers arranged bets for 81 people in that three-week period that totaled more than $48,000.

Bettors received back about a third of their money, either in winnings or refunds if the brothers ran out of time to get the wagers down, the complaints read.

Among those who turned to Fitzgerald for remote betting on slots at Treasure Island was a 53-year-old woman from southeastern Minnesota who told the state investigator that she was a gambling addict, the charges read.

The woman, who often bet at night as she struggled with insomnia and other medical difficulties, told the investigator she was "hopeful that illegal forms of gambling like Fitzgerald's would be eliminated from the Internet, as it would help limit her exposure to gambling and ease the struggle that she faced every day," the complaints continued.

According to the criminal complaints and other court documents:

Fitzgerald collected through cash apps an initial $5.99 subscription fee and then $25 that he kept for every $100 deposited for wagering, which he streamed live on TikTok.

Archived videos on his main TikTok account revealed 165,000 followers from around the world. Video highlights showed wads of cash and slot machines rolling up occasional big jackpots, including one in December that topped $15,000.

Administrators at both casinos caught on to Fitzgerald's TikTok bookie business. On Jan. 12, he livestreamed about being booted from Mystic Lake during a previous visit. That same day, he was in his car outside Treasure Island and said he had just been given a permanent trespass notice.

The American Gaming Association, which represents sports books and casinos across the country, said after the brothers were initially charged that it has never heard of such a gambling scheme.