There are two types of criminals: those that get caught, and those that don’t.
Often career criminals make a point out of not leaving evidence, witnesses, or drawing any attention whatsoever to themselves.
Certainly, what you don’t want to do is try to build a business based on bringing attention to your wealth obtained through illegitimate means.
That is exactly what Omar Carrasquillo, also known as Omi in a Hellcat, tried to do…
You see, Omi founded a company called Gears TV Reloaded, an IPTV streaming service:
What the now defunct homepage of Gears TV Reloaded, a multi-million dollar IPTV service, looked like from 2019-2022
Rather than paying hundreds of dollars every month to cable companies, you paid Gears TV Reloaded twenty bucks per month and received access to practically everything you could ever want to watch– it was a clear value proposition.
That’s why bootlegging IPTV is big business, with millions of dollars being made every year.
All it requires is capturing an original stream, and simply restreaming it.
The technical aspect isn’t very difficult; the difficult aspect is keeping the service online as it gains attention.
Growth nearly always kills grey-area businesses. As more money is made, more people are made aware, and as more people are made aware, pressure rises.
Inevitably, the cycle leads to the collapse of nearly all grey-area services once they’ve grown big enough to be worth taking action on.
Despite that, Omi managed to grow his IPTV streaming service, Gears TV Reloaded, to a rather impressive level–surpassing the vast majority of IPTV streaming services out there.
So much so, that had Omi decided to walk away while he was on top, he could have lived off of his money made from Gears TV Reloaded for the rest of his life.
But, of course, he didn’t decide to do that…
Instead, like many overconfident grey-area business owners, Omi passed his mark and pushed his luck.
When Did Things Start Going Wrong for Omi in a Hellcat?
Right about the time he launched his lifestyle YouTube vlog.
It’s one thing for Jake Paul or Tai Lopez to do it. They pay their taxes and can explain where their money is coming from to the IRS.
On the other hand, when you’re using pictures like this as clickbait on YouTube:
What do you expect? The government isn’t going to take notice? That they won’t have any questions and pop over to your tax returns real quick to take a second glance?
It honestly would not surprise me if the IRS had a branch devoted solely to looking into YouTubers, and following up on the purchases they publicly make.
It’s safe to say Omi’s YouTube channel caught on pretty quickly–for both the authorities and viewers.
It featured well-known United States rappers like Lil Uzi Vert, jewelry, and fancy cars — it’s a bit sad, but that’s an easy way to sell your soul and get some quick clicks on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsakM0l9OH0
Also, Omi didn’t really try to hide the fact he owned an IPTV streaming service, in fact, he was quite honest about it… which also, doesn’t make any sense for an American — you are in the belly of the beast for copyright laws.
He got by with it for a while, but as of November 2019, the FBI and IRS finally raided his home, in fact, he live-streamed part of it occurring on his channel (it’s unlisted, but still available for viewing):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGSSRbKXxpM
Here are some direct quotes to summarize the first 6-minutes and the most important parts of the video:
- “[The FBI] pretty much seized all my cars”
- “One thing I’m not ever going to do is display how much money I’m worth”
- “Copyright laws haven’t been updated since the 1960s”
- “[With Gears TV Reloaded he] hit a grey area and exploited it”
- “I know I’m going to do a couple of years off of this”
The FBI and IRS ultimately seized $35 million in assets, including foreign cars like Lamborghinis and Rolls-Royces.
“THE GRAND JURY FURTHER CHARGES THAT:
As a result of the violations of Title 18, United States Code Sections 371, 1343, 2319, set forth in this indictment, defendants BILL OMAR CARRASQUILLO, also known as ‘Omarr,’ ‘MaOmir,’ ‘Target,’ ‘Targetin1080P,’ and JESSE GONZALES, also known as ‘Jesse Daniel Gonzales,’ shall forfeit to the United States of America any property, real or personal, that constitutes or is derived from proceeds traceable to the commission of such violations, including, but not limited to the sum of approximately $34,826,402.00 (Forfeiture Money Judgment), and the following property:
A. Financial Instruments:
- $5,230,918.26 in U.S. currency seized from TD Bank Account #432.9634011, in the name of Bill Omar Carrasquillo.
- $542,441.50 in U.S. currency seized from Nuvei Technologies, which Nuvei Technologies had been holding for the benefit of “Gears Server”.
- $294,911.33 in U.S. currency seized from Bank of America Account #325090920626, in the name of “Jesse Daniel Gonzales Sole Prop DBA GT Subscriptions”.
- $446,428.56 in U.S. currency seized from Bank of America Account #325109869191, in the name of “Jesse Daniel Gonzales Sole Prop DBA GT Subscriptions”.
- $173,250.00 in U.S. currency seized from F&A Federal Credit Union Account # 639700, in the name of Jesse Gonzales and Jennifer L Gonzales.
B. United States Currency:
- $20,020.00 in U.S. currency seized on November 20, 2019, from North Hope Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
- $1,190.00 in U.S. currency seized on November 20, 2019, from Lorimer Avenue, Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania.
- $20,850.00 in U.S. currency seized from a 2020 Bentley Continental VIN # SCBCG2ZGLLC074750, registered to and in possession of Bill Omar Carrasquillo.
- $80,000.00 in U.S. currency seized from a 2018 Mercedes Benz AMG VIN # WDD7X8KB9KA001903, registered to Claudio Roman, Jr., and in possession of Bill Omar Carrasquillo.
- $62,920.00 in U.S. currency seized on November 20, 2019, from Terradell Street, Pico Rivera, California, 90660.
C. Vehicles:
- One 2019 Jeep Wrangler, VIN # 1C4HJXEG6KW570874.
- One 2018 Dodge Commercial ProMaster 2500 159″ W.B. High Roof, VIN # 3C6TRVDGTJE148833.
- One 2019 Lamborghini Huracan, VIN # ZHWUF4ZF9LLA12725.
- One 2019 Suzuki Motorcycle, VIN # JS1SK44A0K7101007.
- One 2019 Chevrolet Camaro, VIN # 1G1FH1R79K0108119.”
[The list continues, including several properties…]
Then things went quiet for a while, until…
Omi in a Hellcat Gets Indicted
The United States federal government does not move fast.
They often spend years building cases because when they do present charges, unlike state cases, the federal government has over a 95% conviction rate.
Why? They build extremely rock-solid cases that are hard to create narratives and angles to poke holes through, and federal prosecutors make far fewer mistakes than state prosecutors.
Furthermore, the IRS is one of the very last three letter agents I’d want to make angry. In Omi’s case, the IRS is what caught wrongdoing first.
But as of 2021, the feds finally indicted Omi officially.
What you’ll see on the indictment is the feds intentionally stacked charges, which is one of the reasons they have such a high conviction rate…
“VIOLATIONS:
18 U.S.C S 371 (conspiracy – 1 count)
17 U.S.C. $$ 1201(a)(lXA), 1204(aXl)
(circumvention of access control device – 1
count)
17 U.S.C. $ s06(a)(1)(A); 18 u.S.C. $
2319(bX1) (reproduction of a protected work
– 1 count)
17 u.S.c. $ s06(a)(1)(A); 18 u.S.C. $
2319(bX3) (public performance of a
protected work – 19 counts)
18 U.S.C. $ 1029(a)(2), (cXlXa)(i) (access
devicefraud-4counts)
18 U.S.C. $ 1343 (wire fraud – 6 counts)
18 U.S.C. $ 1014 (false statements to a bank –
3 counts)
18 U.S.C. $ 1957 (engaging in monetary
transactions derived from specified unlawful
activity – 19 counts)
18 U.S.C. S 1001 (false statement – 2 counts)
18 U.S.C. $2232(a) (removal of property to
prevent seizure – 2 counts)
26 U.S.C. $ 7201 (tax evasion – 4 counts)
18 U.S.C. $ 2
Notices of Forfeiture”
Then the feds can say, “We’ve got all of this evidence, you’re caught, with all of these charges you’re looking at this — save us both the hassle, accept this plea deal, and we’ll drop these charges, so you’ll do 5 1/2 years instead of 25.”
It’s rather unethical, and you’ll see time and time again both state and federal prosecutors stacking charges like this. Ultimately, pulling charges out of thin air (yes there may be 1 count, but is there 19?) to make a case scarier, and more difficult to take to trial.
Anyways, as per usual, the feds did just that and offered him a plea deal to match.
Which, when you consider the fact Omi gave the feds their case on a platter and even sprinkled some salt on top of it like Salt Bae… what do you think he did? Accept the plea deal?
Omi Accepts Plea Deal
If you guessed yes, then you’d be right.
In 2023, Omi in a Hellcat accepted a plea deal, agreeing to a sentence of 5 and a half years in federal prison, as well as an extremely hefty restitution repayment:
“PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Bill Omar Carrasquillo, 36 years old, of Swedesboro, NJ, was sentenced to 66 months’ imprisonment, five years of supervised release, more than $30 million in forfeiture, and more than $15 million in restitution by United States District Court Judge Harvey Bartle III, for crimes arising from a wide-ranging copyright infringement scheme that involved piracy of cable TV, access device fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, and hundreds of thousands of dollars of copyright infringement.
As the Indictment set forth, from about March 2016 until at least November 2019, Carrasquillo along with his co-defendants operated a large-scale internet protocol television (IPTV) piracy scheme in which they fraudulently obtained cable television accounts and then resold copyrighted content to thousands of their own subscribers, who could then stream or playback content. The defendants also made fraudulent misrepresentations to banks and merchant processors in an effort to obtain merchant processing accounts. During the period of their scheme, the defendants earned more than $30 million. Carrasquillo, in particular, converted a large portion of his profits into homes and dozens of vehicles, including high-end sports cars. When agents attempted to seize those items pursuant to judicially-authorized warrants, Carrasquillo made false statements about and attempted to hide some of those vehicles, including a Freightliner recreational vehicle and a McLaren sports vehicle.
Carrasquillo was convicted of one count of conspiracy; one count of violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act; 1 count of reproduction of a protected work; 3 counts of public performance of a protected work; 1 count of access device fraud; 1 count of wire fraud; 1 count of making false statements to a bank; 1 count of money laundering; 1 count of making false statements to law enforcement officers; and 1 count of tax evasion.
In addition to a sentence of 66 months’ imprisonment, the court ordered Carrasquillo to pay $10.7 million in restitution to the victim cable companies, more than $5 million in restitution to the IRS, and to forfeit over $30 million in illegal proceeds that he reaped from the scheme.
‘Income gained from the infringement of copyrights is taken seriously, and the federal government will continue its commitment to protecting copyright holders, creators, and the millions of customers who enjoy the fruits of a strong intellectual property rights system,’ said U.S. Attorney Romero. ‘Carrasquillo and his co-defendants operated a large-scale cable piracy scheme. They fraudulently obtained cable television accounts and then resold copyrighted content to tens of thousands of subscribers across the country and abroad, earning over 30 million dollars in illicit revenue in about three years, none of which was reported on state or federal income tax return. Accordingly, today’s sentencing of Omar Carrasquillo includes prison time and substantial forfeiture and restitution reflecting the severity of his actions.'”
He has already started serving his time at USP Lewisburg (medium security) and has a scheduled release date of 02/24/2028 (just search register no. 66578-509 here).
The federal government requires you to serve essentially 10 months for every 12 months, providing you stay out of trouble. Also, within a year, he could likely be moved to a much cushier dorm-style low-security federal prison camp, considering the nature of his crimes.
Who Wins Here?
Honestly, nobody. It’s stupid all around.
Does Hollywood win?
No, not really. There are 1,000 other IPTV streaming services out there, and most of them aren’t located in the United States, with owners flexing their wealth on YouTube; making themselves sitting ducks.
Does the federal government win?
I guess, more tax money.
But they didn’t do anything to stop piracy at all, and now have to shelter a guy for 5 years for a non-violent crime — when he could be out here trying to operate a legitimate business and pay back his missing tax money and restitution to the victims.
Does Omi win?
Prison isn’t ideal, so, I’d say no.
But, I’d guess he still has some money stashed away somewhere, and at least got something out of it.
You’d think he’d be smart enough to at least have money in someone else’s name, in another country, or on a hard drive buried somewhere.
In the following video, Omi discusses the verdict of the case as well as accepting responsibility for his actions:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kvb2bJP4JUs
P.S. Interested in a new car?
If so, this October 13th, 2023, the feds are holding an auction, consisting of Omi’s seized foreign cars and more:
“Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Marshals Service will hold an auction for the multimillion dollar car collection of the imprisoned YouTube star Bill Omar Carrasquillo on October 13th in Baltimore, MD.
The live auction will include over 55 cars, motorcycles, ATV, and other vehicles seized from Carrasquillo, also known as ‘Omi In A Hellcat’. The collection includes exotic cars like Lamborghinis and Bentleys, Jeeps and other SUVs. The auction will be held at the historic B&O Railroad Museum on October 13th, with a preview day on Thursday, October 12th starting at 11 am EST. Also available in a separate online sale is a collection of jewelry seized from Carrasquillo along with other items from other cases.
Earlier this year, Carrasquillo was sentenced to 5 ½ years in prison for crimes arising from a wide-ranging criminal scheme that involved piracy of cable TV, access device fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, and hundreds of thousands of dollars of copyright infringement. In addition to his prison sentence, Carrasquillo is subject to a $30 million forfeiture money judgment and must pay $15 million in restitution.
The event is open to the public. To place a bid on any item, registration is required. Registration information for the auto event is located at www.appleauctioneeringco.com; and jewelry sale registration is located at http://www.txauction.com/USM.
The Department of Justice Asset Forfeiture Program is a key component of the federal government’s law enforcement efforts to combat major criminal activity by disrupting and dismantling illegal enterprises, depriving criminals of the proceeds of illegal activity, deterring crime and restoring property to victims. The U.S. Marshals Service plays a critical role in identifying and evaluating assets that represent the proceeds of crime as well as efficiently managing and selling assets seized and forfeited by DOJ.”
Remember, these are gently used driveway props. A steal of a deal; don’t let some Hollywood executive get your half-off Lamborghini before you do.
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Omi in a Hellcat, whose real name is Bill Omar Carrasquillo, gained notoriety for his involvement in the creation and operation of the IPTV streaming service known as Gears TV Reloaded.