Utah Files Criminal Charges Against Kalshi and Its Co-Founders

Utah has filed criminal charges against prediction market Kalshi and its co-founders, CEO Tarek Mansour and COO Luana Lopes Lara. Utah Attorney General Derek Brown’s office filed 14 counts on Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, in state court in Salt Lake County.

The state alleges Kalshi promoted unregulated gambling, escalating a fight over whether federal registration shields prediction markets from state gambling laws.

The 14 Utah Charges Against Kalshi

Prosecutors charged KalshiEX LLC, Mansour and Lopes Lara with 14 counts, according to ABC4 News in Utah. There is one count of pattern of unlawful activity, a second-degree felony, 12 counts of online gambling promotion, each a third-degree felony, and one count of general gambling promotion, a misdemeanor.

Most of the charges are felonies. Naming the co-founders as defendants also means Mansour and Lopes Lara face the case personally, alongside the company.

How Utah Built Its Case

The case rests on an undercover investigation. An agent from the Utah attorney general’s office used a local address, phone number and debit card to access Kalshi in September.

The agent then placed 12 sports wagers on the platform. The bets covered football (including NFL games), baseball and other sports.

What Brown and Kalshi Said About the Charges

Brown framed the case around Utah’s blanket gambling ban. He also dismissed the idea that Kalshi’s label or federal status changes anything. “Calling it a ‘prediction market’ doesn’t change what it is, and being federally registered doesn’t put a company above the law,” Brown said. That stance fits the state’s strict rules.

Kalshi called the charges a “crazy overreach” in a statement. “Utah is clearly playing politics,” the company said. “We look forward to putting a stop to this in court, just like we did in Arizona.”

A Civil Suit and a CFTC Lawsuit Came First

The criminal case is Utah’s second legal move against Kalshi in a week. The attorney general’s office filed a civil lawsuit against the company one week earlier in the same court.

The charges also landed one day after the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) sued Utah. The federal regulator wants to stop the state from enforcing its gambling laws against federally registered prediction market operators.

Kalshi Has Lost Two Federal Court Rounds Against Utah

Kalshi has already tried to stop Utah’s enforcement. In August, a federal judge rejected the company’s bid to block the state.

The judge said the Commodity Exchange Act, the federal law at the center of the dispute, doesn’t prevent Utah from enforcing its own laws. In September, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to halt Utah’s enforcement while Kalshi appeals.

The broader dispute appears headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Utah Follows Arizona’s Criminal Case Against Kalshi

Utah is the second state to criminally prosecute a CFTC-registered prediction market operator. Arizona was first, charging Kalshi in March 2026. This was alongside Nevada’s decision to extend its Kalshi ban.

Other states are pushing back as well. A Michigan judge temporarily blocked Kalshi, and the Texas Senate has taken aim at prediction markets, which it views as disguised sports betting.

Why the Utah Kalshi Charges Matter for Bettors

Utah prohibits all forms of gambling, and its constitution bars lawmakers from regulating gambling, Al Jazeera reported. So far, federal registration hasn’t shielded Kalshi from the state’s enforcement.

For bettors, the case is a reminder to know how a platform is regulated.