A New Palestine man is charged with running an illegal gambling business that included New Palestine High School football bets.

Bret Wells, 46, is charged with six felonies including corrupt business influence, professional gambling, promoting professional gambling and theft.  His business took in more than $17 million in sports bets over a three-year period. 

Court documents say Wells brought in over $17 million in bets that made him more than $1.8 million in profits. They also say he bet on New Palestine High School football playoff games last fall. Investigators say he made over 176,000 bets between January 2016 and May of this year.

The Indiana Gaming Commission says Wells was caught  through surveillance and information from a former business partner, who says Wells also stole equipment from him.

The gambling operation had clients in eight different central Indiana counties, investigators say.