The final installment of this three-part column highlights more of my interview with Paul Leggett, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Tokwiro Enterprises, the company that owns Absolute Poker and UltimateBet. As this article goes to print, there has been a decision rendered by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission with regard to the UB cheating scandal that will be addressed in the next issue.
Most of this interview focused on UltimateBet, as it had been without resolution or KGC decision for many months at the time of my discussion with him. With regard to that, I asked about the multiple investigations, the first of which was UB's self-audit.
"We started our investigation the day after we were notified about [the cheating]," Leggett said. "On July 25, we provided [the Kahnawake Gaming Commission] with a full report saying that we believe we've identified everything that's gone on here; we've collected all the evidence that we can and identified all the cheating and everyone believed to be involved in this. They're still completing their independent investigation, and their auditors have full access to our systems."
The discussion moved to the newest development in the multi-tiered investigation, which included the hiring of independent auditor Frank Catania by the KGC to investigate Tokwiro Enterprises as a whole. It seemed to be a move that could have caught Tokwiro off guard, which was confirmed in the COO's response:
"It was a surprise to me; I only learned about it the day before their public announcement. But I welcome anything that's going to help our regulator feel better about us as a company and what we've done here, that we've done the right things, and that we're not involved in any way. We want to help reassure the public that the facts are all being brought to light, that our company had nothing to do with this, and that every penny has been paid back. We welcome it with open arms. I think it's great for the industry and for us personally."
Finally, Leggett was asked to speak to the public and those who are skeptical about Tokwiro's two companies, AP and UB, being involved in scandals. How can customers have confidence in those businesses?
"I completely understand the public's frustration, but it is very complex and not as simple as some people think it is. There is nothing more that I want than to satisfy the poker community with completing this investigation, refunds, and making sure there is enough information for the public about exactly what went on and who did what... One of the things that makes me feel really good about this whole situation and about people's faith in our business is that I've been an open book... I'm also very happy that a lot of the players who were affected continue to play at UltimateBet, and to me, that's the biggest sign of confidence in our company. A lot of these people know what we're doing from a security aspect and how serious we are about investing in it, and a lot of them had input into the steps we've taken.
"There are a lot of reasons why people should come and play at UltimateBet, but I do understand why certain people will choose never to spend their money on our site again. They want to use their consumer power to make us pay for what occurred on our site, and I totally understand that.
"It's our job now to do everything we can to prove to the poker community and the world that we are open, we are transparent, we are secure, and as additional information comes out about this investigation as it wraps up, that people are more willing to listen to what we're saying about security and transparency going forward."
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.
