US Government to Unseal Portions of Online Poker Seizure Warrant
After announcing the indictment of an individual connected to payment processors dealing with online poker sites Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars, the US Attorney's Office out of the Southern District of New York is considering allowing the unsealing of information contained within seizure warrants related to this matter.
Costigan Media, parent company of Gambling911.com, filed a Motion to Intervene and have the seizure warrants and other court documents unsealed. The Honorable Judge Laura Taylor Swain heard the case on July 27 and was prepared to render a decision this week. The US Government on Thursday evening submitted a letter to Judge Swain.
According to the letter, the Government believes that the filing of this Indictment, which is not under seal, will affect law enforcement reasons for keeping the seizure warrant affidavits sealed. The Government expressed that it is currently determining whether portions of these affidavits can be unsealed without compromising the law enforcement interests identified in the sealed Declaration of Special Agent Dana Conte.
"While there was some division of opinion in the courts as to whether the First Amendment right of access applies pre-indictment, it seems very clear that it does apply post-indictment," said Baruch Weiss, Attorney for Costigan Media.
The seizure warrants were issued on June 2 and on June 24. The US Attorneys Office out of the Southern District of New York claims that some $40 million of funds transferred between online poker rooms and payment processors were used for laundering of monies.
Lev L. Dassin, the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Joseph M. Demarest, Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), announced Thursday the filing of an indictment charging Douglas Rennick with bank fraud and other offenses stemming from his role in processing more than $350 million for Internet gambling companies.
Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher
