Felony charges filed after FBI horse betting investigation near Caldwell

WILDER (Idaho Statesman) – A fifth person has been charged with a felony after hundreds of law enforcement officers, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, on Sunday descended on a local horse track west of Boise that’s popular among the Latino community.

Officers arrested only a handful of people in the raid in Wilder that law enforcement agencies said was part of an investigation into allegations of illegal betting. Hundreds of others — including children — were detained and questioned about their immigration status, sparking backlash from community members and human rights advocates.

“We are condemning this action in the strongest words possible,” said Leo Morales, executive director of the ACLU of Idaho. “They could have done their work differently, but they chose to do this operation in the worst possible way.”

According to the FBI, four people were taken into custody:

• Ivan Tellez, 37, of Wilder.
• Samuel Bejarano Colin, 37, of Nyssa.
• Dayana Fajardo, 39, of Nyssa.
• Alejandro Torres Estrada, 56, of Buhl.

Court documents obtained by the Idaho Statesman showed that a fifth person, 45-year-old Cesar Iniguez Orozco, of Meridian, also had a warrant issued for his arrest. Iniguez Orozco, along with the other four, are all facing a single felony count of prohibition of illegal gambling business, records showed.

Iniguez Orozco hasn’t been arrested. Sandra Yi Barker, a spokesperson for the FBI, told the Statesman on Monday that Tellez, Bejarano Colin, Fajardo and Torres Estrada “as of now” are the only people the FBI has detained.

Investigators also identified six to 11 horse owners who were involved in the gambling business, according to a criminal complaint filed by FBI Special Agent Jacob Sheri. The horse owners, who were referred to as “the committee,” provided the horses used and made decisions over the race dates, betting pools and entry requirements, the complaint said.

“Illegal gambling isn’t a victimless crime,” Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls, of the Salt Lake City-based field office that covers Idaho, said in a news release. “These operations can create an increase in violent crime, drug activity and violence, putting communities at risk.”

Agencies participating in the raid included the FBI, the Canyon County Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Idaho State Police, the Idaho Department of Correction, the Nampa Police Department and the Caldwell Police Department, according to the FBI’s news release.

The FBI was expected to hold a news conference Monday but canceled it an hour before it was expected to begin. In its updated release, the FBI clarified that ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division was at the raid to process people “who were found to have potential immigration violations during the course of the investigation.”

“Their presence was limited to that specific federal responsibility and was separate from the criminal gambling investigation being led by the FBI,” the release said.

Complaints outline FBI investigation of ‘illegal gambling business’

Back in February, the FBI received a tip from a private citizen over concerns about gambling at La Catedral Arena, according to the complaint. A confidential source also informed federal agents about the betting.

Tellez, the owner of the property, has a conditional use permit from Canyon County to hold horse racing events but doesn’t have a license from the Idaho State Racing Commission to conduct parimutuel betting — which is legal in Idaho with a license.

Commonly used in horse racing throughout the country, parimutuel betting allows similar bets to be pooled together for potentially larger payouts. People can also bet on more than just the winner of the race.

Tellez never applied for a license to conduct that type of betting, according to the FBI complaint. His permit also informed him that gambling was prohibited during any events, it added.

Tellez has deposited about $100,000 into La Catedral Arena accounts at Zions Bank over the past two years, the complaint said. Officials at the bank questioned the source of the funds going into three accounts, according to the FBI.

“Tellez did not provide a definitive answer to the loan officers on the source of funds,” Sheri wrote. “Tellez appears to have unexplained income and is likely profiting from the illegal gambling operation taking place at La Catedral Arena.”

Financial records subpoenaed by law enforcement showed that Bejarano Colin, the bookmaker and administrator of the gambling, received wagers for the horse races through online payment apps like Venmo, Zelle and Cash App, according to a complaint. Since 2023, Bejarano Colin received roughly three dozen transactions, which totaled $17,000 in wagers on the horse races, the complaint said.

“Investigators believe this amount is a fraction of the amount of illegal wagers that Bejarano Colin’s gambling operation has facilitated over the last two years,” Sheri wrote in the complaint.

He communicated on Facebook with Tellez and the horse owners to discuss race dates, what horses can compete, the cost for owners to compete, and the minimum wager required, according to the complaint. He also posted on Facebook about the races.

Fajardo, who is married to Bejarano Colin, made and collected bets with the crowd during races, according to the complaint. On one day in September, she accepted and later collected a bet from an undercover agent, the FBI wrote, while Iniguez Orozco and Torres Estrada were also observed by an agent taking wages on race days.

Fajardo acted as a “splitter,” someone who assist the main bookkeeper with tracking and paying out or collecting wages, according to the complaint. She “appears to be assisting her husband, Samuel Bejarano (Colin), in the operation of the illegal gambling business,” the complaint added.

Tellez, Bejarano Colin, Fajardo and Torres Estrada all have hearings Tuesday afternoon at the James A. McClure Federal Building in Boise. Iniguez Orozco’s hearing hasn’t been scheduled yet, according to online court records.

Reporters Sally Krutizg and Carolyn Komatsoulis contributed.