Utah files criminal charges against Kalshi leadership over online gambling allegations

Utah has escalated its legal fight against prediction markets by filing criminal charges against KalshiEX, LLC and its top executives. State Attorney General Derek Brown filed the case on Wednesday, bringing 14 charges against the platform alongside co-founder and CEO Tarek Mansour and co-founder and COO Luana Lopes Lara. The filings include 12 counts accusing the company and its leadership of illegally promoting online gambling. [1][2]

The criminal action follows an earlier lawsuit in which Utah claimed Kalshi was operating illegally under the state's anti-gambling laws. Other states, including New York, Nevada, New Mexico, Washington, and Connecticut, have also pushed back against platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket. In response, the Trump administration has sued Utah to block enforcement of its gambling prohibition, making Utah the tenth state targeted by the federal agency overseeing prediction markets. [1][2]