A Costa Rica-based businessman who admitted to helping run the offshore sportsbook Tradewinds has avoided prison after he was sentenced to probation and ordered to forfeit $25 million in gambling proceeds.
According to recently surfaced federal court records, Michael Lawrence “Scott” Brannon pleaded guilty in February in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas to operating an illegal gambling business.
Judge Amos L. Mazzant III sentenced Brannon to 12 months of probation, including six months of home confinement.
The man will spend the first six months in home confinement in the United States. He may then serve the remaining six months of probation in Costa Rica, where he resides.
Home Confinement, Probation, and $25 Million Forfeiture
According to court filings, Brannon admitted that he conducted, directed and financed Tradewinds between August 2013 and April 23, 2021, working with at least five other individuals.
He also acknowledged receiving at least $25 million in proceeds from the illegal operation and agreed to forfeit that amount to the government. The forfeiture also covers Tradewinds’ website, trdwd.cc.
A subsequent court judgment ordered Brannon to forfeit the full $25 million. He was required to pay $7 million shortly after sentencing, with the remaining $18 million scheduled to be paid in three $6 million installments after he completes his home confinement.
Tradewinds had operated from Costa Rica since at least the late 1990s and was among the earlier offshore sportsbooks catering to customers outside the country.
Second Tradewinds Case
Brannon is the second person to face federal prosecution over the Tradewinds operation. Clarence “Gary” Austin pleaded guilty in 2023 after admitting that he had also conducted, directed, and financed the sportsbook during the same period.
Austin is known to the public as a professional high-stakes sports bettor and the host of a betting-focused program that aired on ESPN in the early 1980s.
He later operated a retail sportsbook on the Las Vegas Strip before moving into Costa Rica’s emerging offshore betting industry.
Federal authorities raided Austin’s Florida residence in 2021 as part of the Tradewinds investigation.
Following his guilty plea, Austin was sentenced to five years of probation, including six months of home detention.
He also forfeited a substantial collection of assets, including $1.295 million in cash, 61 one-kilogram gold bars, cryptocurrency, funds held in financial accounts and investment products, luxury vehicles and three Florida properties.
Brannon’s probation began on April 6, 2026, when authorities banned him from owning, managing, operating, consulting for, or otherwise participating in any form of gambling business.