Utah Files Criminal Charges Against Kalshi and Two Executives
Utah has filed criminal charges against Kalshi, an operator of prediction markets, and two of its executives, according to The Guardian. The state filed 14 criminal charges in total on October 28, 2026. Thirteen of them accuse the company of violating Utah's prohibition on gambling, and one involves profiting from illegal activity.
The charging documents name Tarek Mansour, Kalshi's co-founder and chief executive, and Luana Lopes Lara, its co-founder and chief operating officer, as defendants. Deseret News reported that the two co-founders are each charged with one count of pattern of unlawful activity.
Prediction markets are online platforms where people trade on whether future events will happen. Utah's civil lawsuit, filed on October 20, alleges that Kalshi lets Utah residents bet on sports, elections, politics and other outcomes, in violation of state gambling laws. The state described the conduct as a "brazen pattern of unlawful conduct." Its complaint also states that Kalshi made up to $61.2 million in fees from wagers, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.
The dispute began earlier in the year. In February, Kalshi sued Utah and asked a federal judge to stop the state from enforcing its gambling restrictions against the platform. A federal judge rejected that request. Utah Attorney General Derek Brown said Kalshi kept operating in the state despite a federal court ruling that Utah's gambling laws apply to the company.
Under Utah law, offering online gambling to anyone in the state is a third-degree felony, the lowest felony level in the state's system, according to the Utah Attorney General's office. Kalshi has responded to the criminal charges by calling them a "crazy overreach."
Utah is not the only state to take criminal action against the company. In March, Arizona's attorney general filed criminal charges against Kalshi, accusing the platform of operating an illegal gambling business, Reuters reported.
