Poker and the Law

By Shari Geller

The biggest news story of today was supposed to the official start of the 2011 World Series of Poker.  Speculation as to how Black Friday would affect this year’s series has swirled around for weeks and when the first official event began, there were a notable number of no-shows.  One of them was Team Full Tilt pro Phil Ivey. 

Any questions about what his non-appearance meant was quickly answered after Ivey went to his official Facebook page and issued a lengthy, serialized statement that has sent shockwaves through the poker community.

Ivey, one of if not the game’s best, stated that he would not be attending this year’s WSOP and went on to say that he had filed suit against Tiltware, the parent company of Full Tilt Poker.  The entire statement reads as follows:

By Shari Geller and Lou Krieger

The indictments handed down by the Department of Justice against three online poker companies and their payment processors are just over a month old, and yet word comes out of New York tonight that the first of the eleven named defendants has already entered a guilty plea.

According to the Associated Press, Bradley Franzen pleaded guilty in a Manhattan court on Monday to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and accepting funds in connection with illegal internet gambling.   This information came to AP from Preet Bharara, the US attorney for the Southern District of New York, the lead prosecutor on the case.

By Shari Geller and Lou Krieger

With Pokerstars players reporting return of their deposits over the past two weeks, those who have money at Full Tilt Poker have been waiting for their returns to start coming in.  Instead, one month after the DOJ handed down the indictments that closed Full Tilt to US players, those players are no closer to seeing any of their money.

By Shari Geller and Lou Krieger

Last Friday, Costa Rican officials with the Judicial Investigation Police (OIJ) conducted a raid on the offices of Absolute Poker and UB, two of the online poker sites under indictment by federal authorities in the U.S. for money laundering, bank and wire fraud and illegal gambling activity.  This followed word that the Blanca Games Inc. (“Blanca”), parent company of Absolute/UB, would have to file for bankruptcy.  Today, not surprisingly, Blanca announced that all U.S. sponsored pros would have their contracts terminated.

By Shari Geller and Lou Krieger

Police in Costa Rica raided the offices of Absolute Poker/UB this morning.  Agents with the Organismo Investigacion Judicial (OIJ), their version of the Department of Justice, armed with a search warrants, hit at least six separate locations including residential homes as well as the offices of persons associated with the poker companies. 

The police action follows the indictments brought by the Justice Department last month against Absolute Poker and two other online poker sites for money laundering, bank and wire fraud, and illegal gambling.  

By Lou Krieger and Shari Geller

MSNBC reported last night that Absolute Poker/UB will enter bankruptcy.  This action leaves players who have funds currently on deposit with Absolute and UB twisting in the wind, with no assurance they will ever have access to their money.  

Madeira Fjord, a Norwegian company that represents shareholders in Blanca Gaming of Antigua, the parent company of AP/UB, told them that the company had “no cash on hand and no prospects for any cash flow for the foreseeable future.” Blanca Gaming stated that, “it is currently unable to make any payments toward its debt obligations.”

MSNBC reported that a source in Costa Rica—where Absolute Poker and UB have their operations center—told them that more than 300 customer support and marketing employees, approximately 95 percent of the staff, were laid off.

By Lou Krieger and Shari Geller

Every hero needs a villain.  Without it the drama seldom rises to the level it often achieves when the scales are balanced and both sides have to raise their game to succeed.

Where would Sherlock Holmes be without Professor Moriarty?  Batman without the Joker?  The Dodgers minus the Giants? Ali lacking Fraiser? They all need one another, just as the Packers need the Bears, and McEnroe needed the chair umpire.

By Shari Geller and Lou Krieger

In the aftermath of the Department of Justice’s indictments against the big three online poker sites serving US players, there are still some sites that are keeping their cyber doors open to the displaced American poker players.  Merge Gaming (home to Carbon, Lock and Felt Stars), out of Australia, seems to be the biggest beneficiary so far.  Also seeing some traffic from US players are Bodog, Cake (Cake and Bet US), Everleaf (Poker View) and Yatahay (Doyle's Room).

By Shari Geller and Lou Krieger

While the Justice Department and the under-attack poker sites have issued a number of statements regarding the government’s crackdown, which we discussed in part one of this series, reaction from the poker community has run the gamut of absolute silence (primarily by some sponsored pros) to loud protestations.  In this article, we will look at a sampling of quotes from some interested observers of the poker scene.

What the Poker Community Has to Say

By Shari Geller and Lou Krieger

The reaction to the shocking full-frontal attack by the Department of Justice against online poker has been coming in since the indictments were unsealed on April 15th.  In this two-part series, we will look at some samplings of quotes and written statements about Black Friday.  First up, quotes from those most interested – the government representatives and the poker sites.

The Government Had Its Say