Utah’s Attorney General filed criminal charges against Kalshi and two top executives on Wednesday, alleging the site promotes gambling in violation of state law. Utah had already filed a civil suit against Kalshi on Oct. 20, but the criminal charges certainly raise the stakes, especially as the Trump administration has swooped in to protect the so-called prediction markets.

On Wednesday, Utah’s Attorney General Derek Brown filed charges against Kalshi co-founders Tarek Mansour and Luana Lopes Lara, including 12 counts of online gambling promotion, a third-degree felony, one count of a pattern of unlawful activity, a second-degree felony, and general gambling promotion, a Class A misdemeanor.

The civil lawsuit calls Kalshi a “back-alley gambling den,” and Attorney General Brown didn’t mince words in a statement to Gizmodo.

“Gambling is illegal in Utah, whether you place the bet, run the game, or promote it. Calling it a ‘prediction market’ doesn’t change what it is, and being federally registered doesn’t put a company above the law,” said Brown.

“A federal court has already ruled that Utah’s gambling laws apply to Kalshi,” continued Brown. “Kalshi kept taking bets from Utahns anyway. That is illegal, and we’re putting a stop to it.”

Sites like Kalshi and Polymarket prefer the term prediction market because there is no house and the odds are set by users as they bet against each other. But the average person really doesn’t see a difference, no matter who’s taking the bets. It’s still broadly understood as gambling.

While Utah is among 11 states that have brought civil charges against Kalshi, it’s only the second to bring criminal charges.

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