Crime
Chad Elie Pleads Guilty in Full Tilt Poker, Black Friday Case
(Bloomberg) - Chad Elie, a Las Vegas man who processed payments for online poker companies, pleaded guilty to a scheme to deceive banks into processing hundreds of millions of dollars in Internet gambling transactions.
Elie, 32, was one of one of 11 people charged last April by prosecutors in the office of Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara in a revised indictment against the founders of PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker.
Gambling Debt May be at Center of Brutal San Francisco Quintuple Murder
Authorities in San Francisco now believe that a gambling debt could be the motive for a brutal quintuple murder that occurred in the Ingleside district Friday morning (March 23, 2012).
Laurent Tapie Relocates to Dublin to ‘Take Over Full Tilt Poker’
Laurent Tapie, the man behind the supposed deal to acquire shuttered Full Tilt Poker, has reportedly moved to that company’s Dublin base where he will reopen FTP for European players. Tapie’s firm, Group Bernard Tapie, operates out of France.
Full Tilt Poker is now going on one year owing customers millions of dollars after it had several bank accounts seized by US authorities. An indictment was handed down against two company executives charging them with bank fraud and money laundering. Full Tilt’s licensing arm eventually pulled the plug on the company last summer.
Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars, UB.com Given Extension by US Attorney
The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York has given online poker sites Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars and UB.com an extension deadline of May 14, 2012 in which to respond to an amended civil complaint.
Court Sketch Drawn of Online Poker Kingpin Turned Informant Daniel Tzvetkoff
An online poker payment processor turned informant, Australian Daniel Tzvetkoff, is due to become the US prosecutor’s star witness in a case against two defendants tied to the one-time “big three” Web cardrooms, Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars and UB.com.
A trial date is set for April 9 in New York City with defendants (and former colleagues of Tzvetkoff’s) electing not to enter into a plea bargain. Should this case not settle before the April 9 date, this could prove to be the "Trial of the Century", at least as far as the poker community is concerned.
Australian Online Poker ‘Snitch’ Daniel Tzvetkoff to Come Out of Hiding for Trial
The man many believe is solely responsible for the takedown of online poker giants, Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars and UB.com in the United States is finally about to come out of hiding, according to reports in Australian media.
Afghanistan Massacre Suspect Last Arrest at Casino
TACOMA, Wash. — (Associated Press) -- A police report says the U.S. soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan civilians was arrested in 2002 in the drunken assault of a casino security guard.
The report was obtained Tuesday by The News Tribune newspaper in Tacoma. It says someone called police to report that the soldier, Robert Bales, had threatened another customer. Two security guards told him to leave, but Bales got out of his cab, picked up a trash can lid and rushed the guards, punching one in the chest before they tackled him.
Full Tilt Poker Deal Could Happen This Week
Reports have surfaced that the Groupe Bernard Tapie (GBT) is fully prepared to acquire the Full Tilt Poker website as early as this week. While we have heard the same song and dance for months now, there is renewed optimism as a result of the specific time frame being announced.
Tom Jones, Englebert Humperdinck Millions Went to Pay Off Mob Bosses
Legendary performers Tom Jones and Englebert Humperdinck lost millions as a result of their manager, music mogul Gordon Mills, siphoning off the cash to pay gambling debts to the Mob, according to reports that surfaced this week.
Mills, who passed away from cancer in 1986, is reported to have owed $320 million in gambling debts.
The monies disappeared from Las Vegas shows that were on a retainer of $8,000 (£5,000) per week.
FBI Probes Auburn Point Shaving: Guard Varez Ward Implicated (Video)
The FBI has begun a probe into possible point shaving at Auburn, specifically suspended point guard Varez Ward. He is accused of attempted point shaving in at least two games, according to a Yahoo Sports report filed Thursday.
The FBI began its investigation in late February centering on losses to Alabama on Feb. 7 and Arkansas on Jan. 25.
All 6 Defendants in Alabama Political Gambling Corruption Case Acquitted
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — (Associated Press) - A jury acquitted a casino owner, three current or former state lawmakers and two other defendants on all counts Wednesday in a high-profile federal case that alleged the legislators were being bribed to legalize gambling in the state.
Wired.com: Uncle Sam’s Iron Grip on the .Com Domain Name
In light of several high profile seizures of .com domain names within the online gambling sector as well as Web streaming and imitation merchandise, Wired.com has published a well thought out piece regarding the current climate and how Uncle Sam is expected to continue going after .com domains.
Full Tilt Poker Head Ray Bitar: ‘I’m Sorry’
In his first interview since Full Tilt Poker went belly up last summer owing countless numbers of customers millions of dollars, CEO Ray Bitar tells the poker world “I’m sorry”.
Bitar, along with other Internet poker execs from three different companies, were indicted last April, charged with bank fraud and money laundering.
Banker, One Time Billionaire R. Allen Stanford Found Guilty on 13 of 14 Counts
A billionaire banker who maintained a significant presence in Antigua, R. Allen Stanford, has been found guilty on 13 of 14 counts.
Antigua is among the leading Internet gambling jurisdictions serving the US market. It was widely reported at the time of his arrest that gambling operators maintained accounts with Stanford’s bank on the Caribbean island.
Double-Murderer Poker Pro was Devout Mormon Opposed to Gambling
What's up with the Mormon Church and gambling?
Mormons are supposed to be against all vice, including premarital sex, smoking, drinking, drugs and even cursing.
And, of course, gambling is on that list.
But, in recent weeks, some of the most famous Mormons in the U.S. have expressed their love and affinity for gambling.
And now it has been revealed that one of the most infamous Mormons in the country is a true devotee of gambling who made a living at it!
Jury in Alabama Gambling Corruption Case Deliberates for 5th Day
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – (Associated Press) - The jury in Alabama's gambling corruption trial deliberated for a fifth day Monday, with a juror who became ill Sunday returning for the day's talks.
Deliberations were cut short Sunday afternoon when a juror with a known blood pressure problem became ill. A court official said the juror was checked out by a doctor and resumed work Monday morning with the rest of the panel.
British Poker Player Faces Murder Charges in US: Allegedly Killed Wife
British poker player Marcus Bebb-Jones, 48, is accused of killing his wife and dumping her body in western Colorado in 1997. A preliminary hearing has been running from February 24 and is scheduled to end March 15.
A judge will decide if there is enough evidence to move forward with a trial.
British police arrested Bebb-Jones in Worcestershire, England, in 2009. He was extradited only after prosecutors said they would seek a life sentence and not a death sentence if convicted of killing his then wife, Sabrina Bebb-Jones.
Memo to Calvin Ayre: Head for Hong Kong…or Zimbabwe!
They say Laos is lovely this time of year.
So are Qatar, Angola and Nepal.
Vietnam gets a little hot, however, as does Cambodia and Indonesia.
And of course Libya, Tunisia and Syria are hot spots right now too, but in a different way.
For Canadian billionaire and Bodog.com founder Calvin Ayre, however, these Third-World hell-holes might be looking like islands of paradise right about now.
Poker Player Who Murdered Parents Ernie Scherer to be Profiled on 48 Hours Mystery
Gambling911.com was the first site to break the news that Ernie Scherer III, a poker player who killed both his parents in cold blood, would be profiled on the CBS news magazine “48 Hours Mystery”. Saturday, March 3 at 10 pm EST, you can finally watch the segment.
The Scherer story was already profiled on NBC’s “Dateline”, delivering significant traffic to the Gambling911.com website.
Pirates Come to Ayre’s Defense
The Pirate Party of Canada has lashed out at the US Government’s indictment of native son and Bodog founder, Calvin Ayre.
Doyle Brunson: ‘Full Tilt Poker Deal Likely to Fall Apart’
Though Full Tilt Poker’s French suitors attorneys continue to insist the deal to acquire the troubled company is still in, Texas Dolly and poker icon Doyle Brunson agrees with a number of other pros who have come forward to express their concerns, suggesting the deal is likely to fall apart.
98-Year-Old Woman, 40 Other Seniors Charged in Poker Raid
A 98-year-old woman and 40 other female senior citizens have been charged in Cyprus after a raid on their weekly poker party. (woman shown in photo is not individual charged)
Online Gambling Payment Processor Facilitator Don Hellinger Pleads Guilty
Nylon Magazine Publisher and one time online gambling payment processor facilitator, Don Hellinger, has plead guilty to Count number 2 of an indictment filed against him.
Hellinger admitted to “operating an illegal money transmitting business” during a period of time in the early to mid portion of this past decade.
Ayre Don’t Care: Bovada, Bodog Say Business as Usual
Following an indictment against Bodog founder Calvin Ayre Tuesday after a year’s long investigation into online sports betting, Ayre told his own self-named news website his life won’t be impacted.
Black Friday Defendant Ryan Lang Pleads Guilty
(Associated Press) - NEW YORK — A Canadian citizen pleaded guilty to U.S. conspiracy charges Tuesday in connection with an investigation of Internet poker gambling that shut down the three largest online poker companies in the United States.
Ryan Lang, 37, entered the plea in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, saying he served as a middleman between poker companies and brokers who tricked banks into processing money for the gambling businesses.
Bodog, Calvin Ayre, et al. Indictment (Full Court Document)
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA :
v.
BODOG ENTERTAINMENT GROUP S.A., d/b/a BODOG.com, CALVIN AYRE, JAMES PHILIP,
DAVID FERGUSON, and DERRICK MALONEY,
Defendants.
: : CRIMINAL NO. : (Conducting gambling business, : 18 U.S.C. §1955; Money : laundering conspiracy, 18 U.S.C. : §1956(h); Aiding and : abetting, 18 U.S.C. §2; : Forfeiture, 18 U.S.C. : §§982(a)(1) and 1955(d)). :
...ooo0ooo... INDICTMENT COUNT ONE (Conducting gambling business)
Defendants in Hellinger Case to Reach Plea Agreement Tuesday
Gambling911.com has learned that defendants in an online gambling case dating back to 2005 are set to enter pleas on Tuesday.
The US Attorney’s Office in Eastern Pennsylvania charged Don Hellinger and four other men with illegal distribution of over $40 million in Internet gambling winnings during the years 2005 and 2006 through a money transfer company, Payment Processing, Inc. Hellinger was also alleged to have been involved in mail fraud.
Bodog.com Domain Seizure ‘Dog’ Years in the Making
The sudden seizure of the Bodog.com domain name late Monday night was not so sudden, Gambling911.com can reveal, nor was it exactly easy to achieve.
The US Attorney’s Office in Maryland, which was responsible for a series of online gambling company domain seizures last May, had been probing Bodog and the company’s colorful founder, Calvin Ayre, since 2003.
Maryland US Attorney Wraps Up Investigation Into Bodog.com: Seizes Domain
The Maryland US Attorney’s has concluded its years long investigation into Bodog.com with the seizure of its domain name. Rumors have been swirling for months that former executives from the company were to be indicted. A press release was expected from the agency on Tuesday.
Matt Glantz: ‘Inevitable That Bernard Tapie Will be Backing Out (of Full Tilt Poker Deal)
Poker pro Matt Glantz provided his gloomy assessment of the future of Full Tilt Poker and those supposed white knights out of France, Groupe Bernard Tapie.
“Unfortunately, I feel based on their recent actions, I believe it is inevitable that Tapie will be backing out. It looks to me that for whatever reason, they have no real interest in acquiring FTP. The reasons why they are hanging around giving the illusion that they are still interested are unclear.”
