Peter F. Dicks (born 1942) is a London-based investment manager and venture capitalist. He was the co-founder of Abingworth PLC, one of the earlier venture capital funds in Europe. He is also the former chairman of Sportingbet PLC, one of the world's largest

sportsbook In the United States, a sportsbook or a race and sports book (sometimes abbreviated as book) is a place where a gambler can wager on various sports competitions, including golf, football, basketball, baseball, ice hockey, soccer, horse racing, ...

s. He is currently a committee vice-chairman with

Mercia Fund Management Mercia Fund Management, which is now known as Mercia Fund Managers or Mercia is part of Mercia Technologies PLC. It is a UK-based venture capital fund manager. The company provides venture capital to businesses focused on innovative technolog ...

Career

Early in his career, Dicks was a stock broker with Joseph Sebag & Co where he met Anthony Montagu. In 1973, Dicks and Montagu left Joseph Sebag and formed Abingworth PLC in London. Abingworth was one of the earlier venture capital firms formed in Europe. Abingworth primarily invested in early-stage companies, specializing in technology start-up companies in the United States, and invested in such notable companies as

Apple Computer Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. Apple is the largest technology company by revenue (totaling in 2021) and, as of June 2022, is the world's biggest company b ...

Silicon Graphics Silicon Graphics, Inc. (stylized as SiliconGraphics before 1999, later rebranded SGI, historically known as Silicon Graphics Computer Systems or SGCS) was an American high-performance computing manufacturer, producing computer hardware and soft ...

and

3COM 3Com Corporation was an American digital electronics manufacturer best known for its computer network products. The company was co-founded in 1979 by Robert Metcalfe, Howard Charney and others. Bill Krause joined as President in 1981. Metcalfe ex ...

. Dicks has served as non-executive chairman or director of numerous companies and investment funds, but it was Dicks' tenure as non-executive chairman of Sportingbet PLC that earned him global notoriety.

Arrest

On 7 September 2006 Mr Dicks was detained by

U.S. Customs The United States Customs Service was the very first federal law enforcement agency of the U.S. federal government. Established on July 31, 1789, it collected import tariffs, performed other selected border security duties, as well as conducted ...

officials at New York City's

John F. Kennedy International Airport John F. Kennedy International Airport (colloquially referred to as JFK Airport, Kennedy Airport, New York-JFK, or simply JFK) is the main international airport serving New York City. The airport is the busiest of the seven airports in the Avia ...

. He was detained under an outstanding warrant issued by the state of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

that charged Dicks with running a gambling enterprise by computer, a crime under Louisiana law. His arrest came two months after the arrest of competitor

David Carruthers David Carruthers (born September 1957 in Edinburgh, Scotland) is a British businessman who was the CEO of online gambling company BETonSPORTS plc from July 2000 until July 2006. He was arrested in the United States on 16 July 2006 on charges ...

, CEO of rival firm

BetonSports BetonSports plc was a British online gambling company founded by Gary Kaplan in 1995. It stopped operating in 2006 after the arrest of its CEO, David Carruthers. The company was one of the biggest players in the United States online gaming mar ...

. In contrast to Carruthers, who was being held on federal charges, Dicks was charged only with violating Louisiana law. Dicks was released on $50,000 bail on 9 September. Shortly thereafter he tendered his resignation as Sportingbet chairman and fought his requested extradition to Louisiana. A hearing scheduled for 28 September 2006 was postponed until the following day to allow New York court officials time to reach a decision. On 29 September, Judge Lopez announced that the warrant would not be enforced, and that Dicks was free to return to the UK.

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

governor

George Pataki George Elmer Pataki (; born June 24, 1945) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 53rd governor of New York from 1995 to 2006. An attorney by profession, Pataki was elected mayor of his hometown of Peekskill, New York, and went on ...

stated that because internet gambling is not a crime in New York, the state does not have the authority to extradite Dicks to Louisiana.

Notes

External links

Sportingbet corporate site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dicks, Peter 1942 births Living people Businesspeople in the casino industry British venture capitalists

Career

Arrest

See also

Notes

External links