Rapper Drake Faces RICO Lawsuit for Promoting and Using Crypto Casino Stake
Drake, along with streamer Adin Ross and Australian national George Nguyen, faces a class action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The suit alleges violations of the Racketeer Influence and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), claiming that Drake used the tipping feature on the crypto casino Stake.us to disguise money transfers related to fraudulent music-stream botting campaigns. Plaintiffs argue that Stake.us misrepresents itself as a "social casino" to circumvent U.S. gambling laws and in reality operates as an illegal online casino. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Virginia and U.S. residents who used Stake.us, purchased casino tokens, or lost money on the platform within the last three years. The complaint states that Drake and Ross, paid promoters of Stake.us, used the platform to transfer substantial funds via the tipping feature, enabling music botting and skirting financial regulation. Plaintiffs seek at least $5 million in damages and claim Stake’s practices expose consumers to the risks of gambling addiction. A previous lawsuit in Missouri made similar allegations against Drake and Ross.
