So the way I gather it, Diggs was the favorite and Gillon was supposed to bet the town's money on him, but instead bet on the opponent and drugged Diggs. Gillon gets a big payoff and everyone in town thinks they just lost the bet and don't question.
I get that Diggs was the hometown hero and all, but would everyone in town, save one, really bet everything they own on the favorite? They wouldn't even make even money on the bet.
I don't think so. He was his manager so he wouldn't be allowed to make a bet anyway. I figured because he was such a heavy favorite that people bet more than they should have. Gillon knew this and drugged him in order to be able to buy up the town cheap.
shareI always assumed that Gillon simply acted as the bookie, taking everyone's bets.
Everyone placed a bet with him on Diggs. He drugged Diggs, everyone lost their money, and he got to keep it.
Yes Gillon acted as a liason for the townspeople to place their bets, he then put that money along with his own on the underdog who had long odds. He knew that people would believe he bet their money on Diggs and wouldn't question when they lost.
Diggs was a heavy favorite in his fight so in order to make money the townspeople had to place large financial bets i.e. $5,000 to win $1,000. The people in town who bet on Diggs likely severely damaged their personal finances, which led to loan defaults and foreclosures. Meanwhile Gillon was betting on the underdog so for every $1,000 he bet he was getting $5,000.
Gillon then took the money from his winnings and invested it by buying most of those defaulted assets for a fraction of their real worth AND keeping a large portion of his wealth liquid.