The seizure of US bank accounts in June came as a shock to American online poker players, not to mention the banks and payment processors. Just as fast as the Department of Justice made its move and seized more than $30 million in online gaming funds amidst the transfer process, they fell silent. But that silence ended when one of the payment processors, Account Services, filed suit to have its $13 million returned, and the PPA received permission to file a brief as a friend of the court. Within no time, the DoJ moved to indict one Canadian man who would take the fall for so many in the same business.
The Department of Justice announced the indictment with uncharacteristic enthusiasm via a press release, noting that Canadian Douglas Rennick was indicted in a Manhattan federal court. Rennick allegedly opened bank accounts in the names of KJB Financial Corporation, Account Services Corporation, and Check Payment Financial Co., claiming that all would be used for services like payroll processing, and issuing rebates, refunds, and sponsorship checks. But the DoJ charges that Rennick used those accounts to transfer funds to and from offshore internet gambling companies in amounts exceeding $350 million.
The charges levied against Rennick were conspiracy to commit bank fraud, conspiracy to engage in money laundering, and conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business. A guilty verdict on all counts could result in up to 55 years in prison and $1,750,000 in fines. In addition, a separate prosecution will attempt to take $565,908,288 from him-money that he allegedly obtained through the crimes listed.
Other co-conspirators were also named in the case but those names were not released to the public. In fact, none of the actual documentation from the DoJ regarding the funds seizures or the Rennick case was made public until Costigan Media, the parent company of Gambling911.com, filed a Motion to Intervene and was granted access to some of the documents. That disclosure showed that Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars were named in the June account seizure warrants, and those companies were also named as companies for which Account Services provided funds transfers, calling them the "largest internet poker businesses in operation."
What this means for companies like PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker is still to be determined, as the companies have been toeing the legal line since the UIGEA passed and other companies left the United States online poker market. However, the Department of Justice has not gone after those companies directly, only companies like Account Services that provide access to money transfers for their customers. In addition, no customers have been targeted by the DoJ as of yet, making it seem as though the Southern District of New York is looking to simply make an example out of one person involved in the entire process-Douglas Rennick.
Since the Rennick indictment, Account Services has been denied its motion to be reimbursed for its $13 million in seized funds. It seems that nothing further will happen in that case until the Rennick case begins to run its course. No information about his extradition to the United States or his defense in the case has been released as of the writing of this article, and the Poker Players Alliance has been silent since the Account Services verdict in late August.
All poker players whose funds were seized, however, have been reimbursed by the appropriate online poker sites affected. The $30-plus million in the hands of the United States DoJ looks to be collecting interest for the federal government until further developments.
Jennifer Newell is a compulsive writer. In addition to Poker Player Newspaper, she writes for numerous publications and blogs at Pokerati.com as California Jen. In her little bit of spare time, she plays poker, too. Contact her at jen3351@msn.com.
