FBI shuts down online poker in the US...

[PondeLftHndSide]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/poker/news/story?id=6362238

At least I was still able to cash out my Pokerstars account - but fuck, what am I going to do now when I'm not working in the garden? I was turning a little profit at single table sit & go's... wonder what peeps who make their living multi-tabling are going to do now?

My main beef with this situation is that they won't let me bring my bong to the card room. I play my best when I'm completely stoned. Cookies, tinctures, and water-cured herb in my cigarettes, I guess...

 

[gdtrfb]

generally speaking, when the internet meets law enforcement...whatever law enforcement just shat on will be replaced by something else and fully populated within 2 weeks.

it's whack-a-mole - you'll find another rodent

 

[ddrew]

Good old USA, trying to tell people what they can and can't do with their own money and time.
Oh, but if you want to poison yourself with tobacco we will sell you all you want, but don't go betting a couple bucks online from the privacy of your own home because that's dangerous.

The US's only TRUE beef with it is that they are not getting a cut of the billions

 

[bterzz]

!@#$~!@%$R!@%T

No wonder the damn update wont update!

 

[Bobby Stainless]

shit.

$30 single table SnGs were my jam.

The best thing to happen to air travel was wifi equipped planes, so you could play poker.

 

[Lone Wolf]

i called this the minute internet gambling originated...


i guarantee a lot more has gone on behind then scenes then the public knows about...

...like.. say...

if man is able to create a virtual gambling place, then man is able to create a way to cheat its customers... there is no way anyone can argue that each of these sites created a way to pull millions, if not billions of dollars out of the pockets of un-suspecting, ignorant gamblers pennies at a time...

who's to say that when you or I went and sat down to play a virtual game of hold'em, that we were not sitting at a table with 8 fictitious players who in fact were part of the company hosting the gambling?

i have sat down and lost hundreds of dollars in absolute BULLSHIT situations... and chances are, I was not alone... and chances are even greater that each of these companies fucked with the WRONG person...

greed kills

 

[longearedfriend]

^^

you know, we can't always win lone wolf

will these sites still be available for canada and other countries ?

that's a shame online poker was awesome

 

[Lone Wolf]

im actually glad our government is going after these guys...

our country could use the money for something productive... (they probably will not, but i am going to think positively and say they WILL use in in a productive manner since our country IS in serious debt)..

pretty scary shit tho... check out each of their websites...

www.fulltiltpoker.com
www.pokerstars.com
www.absolutepoker.com

i hate to hotlink to the FBI's website, but if you dare visit the FBI's website, they have a whole write up on the case... info such as the owners' names, where they reside, and what they are being charged with along with the penalties... these guys are in DEEP shit... hopefully they stocked up enough cash to buy their way out of the deep piles of shit...

here's some copy/paste off the site

the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the unsealing of an indictment today charging 11 defendants, including the founders of the three largest Internet poker companies doing business in the United States—PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, and Absolute Poker (the “Poker Companies”)—with bank fraud, money laundering, and illegal gambling offenses. The United States also filed a civil money laundering and in rem forfeiture complaint (the “Civil Complaint") against the Poker Companies, their assets, and the assets of several payment processors for the Poker Companies. In addition, restraining orders were issued against more than 75 bank accounts utilized by the Poker Companies and their payment processors, and five Internet domain names used by the Poker Companies to host their illegal poker games were seized.

upon further thought and a bowl, i really think this is a great thing that the FBI is doing/has done.... how much money was leaving the country, thus hurting our economy amongst many other things?


ah what the hell, here's the whole press release off of the FBI's website... crazy shit IMO...

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Charges Principals of Three Largest Internet Poker Companies with Bank Fraud, Illegal Gambling Offenses, and Laundering Billions in Illegal Gambling Proceeds
Multi-Billion-Dollar Civil Money Laundering and Forfeiture Action Also Filed Internet Domain Names Used by the Poker Companies Seized

U.S. Attorney’s Office April 15, 2011

• Southern District of New York (212) 637-2600

— filed under: New York Top Stories, Press Release

PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and JANICE FEDARCYK, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the unsealing of an indictment today charging 11 defendants, including the founders of the three largest Internet poker companies doing business in the United States—PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, and Absolute Poker (the “Poker Companies”)—with bank fraud, money laundering, and illegal gambling offenses. The United States also filed a civil money laundering and in rem forfeiture complaint (the “Civil Complaint") against the Poker Companies, their assets, and the assets of several payment processors for the Poker Companies. In addition, restraining orders were issued against more than 75 bank accounts utilized by the Poker Companies and their payment processors, and five Internet domain names used by the Poker Companies to host their illegal poker games were seized.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney PREET BHARARA said: “As charged, these defendants concocted an elaborate criminal fraud scheme, alternately tricking some U.S. banks and effectively bribing others to assure the continued flow of billions in illegal gambling profits. Moreover, as we allege, in their zeal to circumvent the gambling laws, the defendants also engaged in massive money laundering and bank fraud. Foreign firms that choose to operate in the United States are not free to flout the laws they don’t like simply because they can’t bear to be parted from their profits."
FBI Assistant Director in Charge JANICE K. FEDARCYK said: “These defendants, knowing full well that their business with U.S. customers and U.S. banks was illegal, tried to stack the deck. They lied to banks about the true nature of their business. Then, some of the defendants found banks willing to flout the law for a fee. The defendants bet the house that they could continue their scheme, and they lost."

According to the indictment and the civil complaint unsealed today:

On October 13, 2006, the United States enacted the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (“UIGEA"), making it a federal crime for gambling businesses to “knowingly accept" most forms of payment “in connection with the participation of another person in unlawful Internet gambling." Despite the passage of UIGEA, the Poker Companies, located offshore, continued operating in the United States. In a press release dated October 16, 2006, Absolute Poker announced that the company would continue its U.S. operations because “the U.S. Congress has no control over" the company’s payment transactions.

Because U.S. banks and credit card issuers were largely unwilling to process their payments, the Poker Companies allegedly used fraudulent methods to circumvent federal law and trick these institutions into processing payments on their behalf. For example, defendants ISAI SCHEINBERG and PAUL TATE of PokerStars, RAYMOND BITAR and NELSON BURTNICK of Full Tilt Poker, and SCOTT TOM and BRENT BECKLEY of Absolute Poker, arranged for the money received from U.S. gamblers to be disguised as payments to hundreds of non-existent online merchants purporting to sell merchandise such as jewelry and golf balls. Of the billions of dollars in payment transactions that the Poker Companies tricked U.S. banks into processing, approximately one-third or more of the funds went directly to the Poker Companies as revenue through the “rake" charged to players on almost every poker hand played online.

As alleged in the Indictment, to accomplish their fraud, the Poker Companies worked with an array of highly compensated “payment processors"—including defendants RYAN LANG, IRA RUBIN, BRADLEY FRANZEN, and CHAD ELIE—who obtained accounts at U. S. banks for the Poker Companies. The payment processors lied to banks about the nature of the financial transactions they were processing, and covered up those lies, by, among other things, creating phony corporations and websites to disguise payments to the Poker Companies. For example, a PokerStars document from May 2009 acknowledged that they received money from U.S. gamblers through company names that “strongly imply the transaction has nothing to do with PokerStars," and that PokerStars used whatever company names “the processor can get approved by the bank."

By late 2009, after U.S. banks and financial institutions detected and shut down multiple fraudulent bank accounts used by the Poker Companies, SCHEINBERG and BITAR developed a new processing strategy that would not involve lying to banks. PokerStars, FullTilt Poker, and their payment processors persuaded the principals of a few small, local banks facing financial difficulties to engage in such processing in return for multi-million-dollar investments in the banks. For example, in September 2009, ELIE and others approached defendant JOHN CAMPOS, the Vice Chairman of the Board and part-owner of SunFirst Bank, a small, private bank based in Saint George, Utah, about processing Internet poker transactions. While expressing “trepidations," CAMPOS allegedly agreed to process gambling transactions in return for a $10 million investment in SunFirst by ELIE and an associate, which would give them a more than 30 percent ownership stake in the bank. CAMPOS also requested and received a $20,000 “bonus" for his assistance. In an e-mail, one of ELIE’s associates boasted that they had “purchased" SunFirst and that they “were looking to purchase" “a grand total of 3 or 4 banks" to process payments.

The indictment and civil complaint seek at least $3 billion in civil money laundering penalties and forfeiture from the Poker Companies and the defendants. The District Court issued an order restraining approximately 76 bank accounts in 14 countries containing the proceeds of the charged offenses. Pursuant to a warrant for arrest in rem issued by the U.S. District Court, the United States also seized five Internet domain names used by the Poker Companies to operate their illegal online businesses in the United States.

Defendants CAMPOS and ELIE were arrested this morning in Saint George, Utah and Las Vegas, Nevada, respectively. ELIE will appear later today before a U. S. Magistrate Court Judge in Las Vegas, Nevada. CAMPOS will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Court Judge in Saint George, Utah on April 18, 2011. Defendant FRANZEN is expected to appear for his arraignment on April 19, 2011 in the Southern District of New York. Defendants BITAR, SCHEINBERG, BURTNICK, TATE, TOM, BECKLEY, RUBIN, and LANG are not presently in the United States and have not yet been arrested. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York is working with foreign law enforcement agencies and Interpol to secure the arrest of these defendants and the seizure of criminal proceeds located abroad. BITAR, TOM, RUBIN, BECKLEY, CAMPOS, ELIE, and FRANZEN are U. S. citizens. A chart identifying each defendant, the charges, and the maximum penalties, is attached to this release.

U.S. Attorney PREET BHARARA praised the FBI for its outstanding leadership in the investigation, which he noted is ongoing. Mr. BHARARA also thanked Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s New York and New Jersey offices, and the Washington State Gambling Commission, for their assistance in the investigation.

The matters announced today are being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Asset Forfeiture Units. Assistant U.S. Attorneys ARLO DEVLIN-BROWN and NICOLE FRIEDLANDER are in charge of the criminal case, and Assistant U. S. Attorneys SHARON COHEN LEVIN, MICHAEL LOCKARD and JASON COWLEY are in charge of the civil money laundering and forfeiture actions.

The charges contained in the indictment and civil complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

 

[tr1ck_]

I guarantee a lot more has gone on behind then scenes then the public knows about...

I know some online casinos have been accused and had their credibility and customers lost over having "super accounts" who were able to see everyone's hand. Hard to say if thats true or not, but I woudlnt doubt it, although I dont think that is what they are after now. They are just looking to lock their 76 bank accounts and take 3 billion dollars........ nothing big

Here is the best article I found on it: http://www.lotterypost.com/news/230343

Executives indicted, arrested

The founders of the three largest online poker sites were indicted by the FBI on Friday in what could serve as a death blow to the thriving industry.

Eleven executives at PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker were charged with bank fraud and money laundering in an indictment unsealed in a Manhattan court. Two of the executives were arrested on Friday morning in Utah and Nevada. Federal agents are searching for the others.

Prosecutors are seeking to immediately shut down the sites and to eventually send the executives to jail and to recover $3 billion from the companies. Prosecutors seized five Internet domain names used by the poker companies. By Friday afternoon Full Tilt Poker's site displayed a message explaining that "this domain name has been seized by the F.B.I. pursuant to an Arrest Warrant."

The online gambling industry has taken off over the last decade, drawing an estimated 15 million Americans to bet online.

In 2006 Congress passed a law prohibiting online gambling. Most of the leading sites found ways to work around the law using foreign banks, but prosecutors allege that in doing so they broke the law.

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have alleged the poker companies, which are located outside the U.S., tried to sidestep U.S. laws prohibiting banks and credit-card issuers from processing gambling payments by disguising billions of dollars from U.S. gamblers as payments to nonexistent online merchants for golf balls, jewelry, flowers and other merchandise.

After U.S. banks and financial institutions began detecting and shut down bank accounts used by the scheme in late 2009, prosecutors allege, a new strategy was developed in which two online poker websites allegedly persuaded a few small, local banks facing financial difficulties to process their payments in return for multimillion-dollar investments in those banks.

"These defendants concocted an elaborate criminal fraud scheme, alternately tricking some U.S. banks and effectively bribing others to assure the continued flow of billions in illegal gambling profits," said Preet Bharara, the U.S. attorney in Manhattan. "Foreign firms that choose to operate in the United States are not free to flout the laws they don't like simply because they can't bear to be parted from their profits."

Representatives of PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker didn't immediately respond to requests for comment Friday. Contact information for Absolute Poker couldn't immediately be located.

Federal authorities also have filed restraining orders against 76 bank accounts in 14 countries allegedly associated with the poker companies and others as a part of a separate civil forfeiture action. They are seeking at least $3 billion in civil money-laundering penalties and forfeiture.

Friday's indictment and seizures mark the latest effort by U.S. authorities to crack down on online gambling. In recent years, some executives of overseas online-gambling firms have been arrested when they travel to the U.S.

In the latest indictment, U.S. prosecutors have alleged that the poker companies recruited third parties to open bank accounts and process "e-check" transactions using phony company names. Four men who allegedly acted as middlemen in collecting payments also have been charged.

About a third of the funds deposited by gamblers went to the poker companies as revenue, known as the "rake," prosecutors said. A rake refers to a percentage of a poker pot that is collected by a casino or online poker site after a player wins the hand.

Poker fans took to Twitter in droves, worried about the money in their online gaming accounts, fretting that online poker's days were at an end.

"Well the good news is I think I only had about $300 left on the online poker sites overall," tweeted Jimi Schindler of Madison, Wis. "Maybe I'll see that money?!!?"

LA Times, Wall Street Journal

 

[jrockondamic]

Dumb wars increasing terrorism? Fuck it, that shit's hard, anyway. Gotta do something. Mess with gambling sites? Why not.

Drug war is an abysmal failure? Meth ruining entire counties? Fuck it; those guys have guns, anyway. Might as well walk into a pot club, take their money and split. Why not.

Same shit. It's not a conspiracy. It's not a governmental authoritarian movement rooted in some kind of control. It's just lazy mother fuckers who work for the federal government taking the easy way out, trying to justify a paycheck.

 

[Lone Wolf]

U. S. v. Scheinberg et al. (10 Cr. 336)
Defendant Citizenship Residence Age
ISAI SCHEINBERG Canada; Israel Isle of Man 64 (est.)
RAYMOND BITAR United States California Ireland 39
SCOTT TOM United States Costa Rica 31
BRENT BECKLEY United States Costa Rica 31
NELSON BURTNICK Canada Ireland 40
PAUL TATE Isle of Man
RYAN LANG Canada Canada 36
BRADLEY FRANZEN United States Illinois Cost Rica 41
IRA RUBIN United States Costa Rica 52
CHAD ELIE United States Nevada 31
JOHN CAMPOS United States Utah 57

I notice 4 of these American perps live in costa rica... is there something special about costa rica that I do not know about that someone can fill me in on? Are they protected in Costa Rica? Is Costa Rica the place to go to get the best "bang for your buck?" .... has me thinking a bit here...

...and two of them are live in the "isle of man" .... where the fuck is that?!?!? Of these 11 guys, i wonder which one "played their cards right"....

1 Conspiracy to Violate Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGIEA)
ISAI SCHEINBERG, RAYMOND BITAR, SCOTT TOM, BRENT BECKLEY, NELSON BURTNICK, PAUL TATE, RYAN LANG, BRADLEY FRANZEN, IRA RUBIN, CHAD ELIE, JOHN CAMPOS Five years in prison; fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss; three years of supervised release

2 Violation of Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGIEA) -
PokerStars ISAI SCHEINBERG, NELSON BURTNICK, PAUL TATE, RYAN LANG, BRADLEY FRANZEN, IRA RUBIN, CHAD ELIE, JOHN CAMPOS Five years in prison; fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss; three years of supervised release

3 Violation of Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGIEA) -
Full Tilt Poker RAYMOND BITAR, NELSON BURTNICK, RYAN LANG, BRADLEY FRANZEN, IRA RUBIN, CHAD ELIE, JOHN CAMPOS Five years in prison; fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss; three years of supervised release

4 Violation of Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGIEA)
-Absolute Poker SCOTT TOM, BRENT BECKLEY, RYAN LANG, BRADLEY FRANZEN, IRA RUBIN, CHAD ELIE Five years in prison; fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss; three years of supervised release

5 Operation of Illegal Gambling Business -
PokerStars ISAI SCHEINBERG, NELSON BURTNICK, PAUL TATE, RYAN LANG, BRADLEY FRANZEN, IRA RUBIN, CHAD ELIE, JOHN CAMPOS Five years in prison; fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss; three years of supervised release; forfeiture of proceeds of offense

6 Operation of Illegal Gambling Business -
Full Tilt Poker RAYMOND BITAR, NELSON BURTNICK, RYAN LANG, BRADLEY FRANZEN, IRA RUBIN, CHAD ELIE, JOHN CAMPOS Five years in prison; fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss; three years ofsupervised release; forfeiture of proceeds of offense

7 Operation of Illegal Gambling Business -
Absolute Poker SCOTT TOM, BRENT BECKLEY, RYAN LANG, BRADLEY FRANZEN, IRA RUBIN, CHAD ELIE Five years in prison; fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss; three years of supervised release; forfeiture of proceeds of offense

8 Commit Bank Fraud and Wire Fraud
RAYMOND BITAR, BRENT BECKLEY, NELSON BURTNICK, PAUL TATE, RYAN LANG, BRADLEY FRANZEN, IRA RUBIN, CHAD ELIE Fine of $1,000,000 or twice the gross gain or loss; five years of supervised release; forfeiture of proceeds of offense

9 Money Laundering Conspiracy
ISAI SCHEINBERG, RAYMOND BITAR, BRENT BECKLEY, NELSON BURTNICK, PAUL TATE, RYAN LANG, BRADLEY FRANZEN, IRA RUBIN, CHAD ELIE, JOHN CAMPOS 20 years in prison; fine of $500,000 or twice the amount laundered; three years of supervised release; forfeiture of proceeds of offense

 

[Lone Wolf]

Dumb wars increasing terrorism? Fuck it, that shit's hard, anyway. Gotta do something. Mess with gambling sites? Why not.

Drug war is an abysmal failure? Meth ruining entire counties? Fuck it; those guys have guns, anyway. Might as well walk into a pot club, take their money and split. Why not.

Same shit. It's not a conspiracy. It's not a governmental authoritarian movement rooted in some kind of control. It's just lazy mother fuckers who work for the federal government taking the easy way out, trying to justify a paycheck.

i think they will probably seize enough cash out of this deal to cover MANY paychecks for MANY people and programs which lend a helping hand to make America the GREAT country that it truly is.... YEAH sure there are some fucked up things about our country, but please name me one country that is perfect? I would love to know if you or anyone knows of one that exists? p.s. I am far from a politics guy, and i HATE to sound like a pompous, arrogant, American asshole, but i've traveled the world, and I call it like i see it...

 

[greenthumbdub]

is it only these 3 named that went down? sportsbook seems to still be working

 

[longearedfriend]

So in your thoughts, are these guys going to prison ? and if so, how long in your opinion ?

 

[dagnabit]

i think they will probably seize enough cash out of this deal to cover MANY paychecks for MANY people and programs which lend a helping hand to make America the GREAT country that it truly is.... YEAH sure there are some fucked up things about our country, but please name me one country that is perfect? I would love to know if you or anyone knows of one that exists? p.s. I am far from a politics guy, and i HATE to sound like a pompous, arrogant, American asshole, but i've traveled the world, and I call it like i see it...

Shit they will seize enough funds to cover prosecutorial costs and pay for 2 tomahawks to be launched.

This is nothing more than more waste of resources and governmental intrusion into private citizens freedoms.

You want to talk about paychecks?

I know several families wondering where the next meal is coming from now that unemployed daddy's only source of income(online poker) is gone.
I guess mommy can set up a webcam till the government decides that is immoral as well.

 

[mean mr.mustard]

What Would Clint Eastwood Do?

 

[dagnabit]

What Would Clint Eastwood Do?

blow gene autrey on webcam?

 

[mean mr.mustard]

I can't see the Man With No Name kneeling to that fop of a fake.

PS Monaco is a pretty neat country Lone Wolf.

 

[Lone Wolf]

Shit they will seize enough funds to cover prosecutorial costs and pay for 2 tomahawks to be launched.

This is nothing more than more waste of resources and governmental intrusion into private citizens freedoms.

You want to talk about paychecks?

I know several families wondering where the next meal is coming from now that unemployed daddy's only source of income(online poker) is gone.
I guess mommy can set up a webcam till the government decides that is immoral as well.

unemployed daddy needs to grow weed... and mommy should have been on the webcam whether the daddy was poker'ing it up or not!
........ but for real, response below

 

[Lone Wolf]

Shit they will seize enough funds to cover prosecutorial costs and pay for 2 tomahawks to be launched. If the 2 tomahawks were never purchased or launched, wouldn't we become just a little bit more vulnerable to outside attack, thus risking losing some of the luxuries we have grown to appreciate (like the internet?)

This is nothing more than more waste of resources and governmental intrusion into private citizens freedoms. The only problem I have with this is that these private citizens were taking LOTS of money from this country via its citizens... more then 3billion... 3billion is what they HOPE to get... these 11 guys combined have illegally stockpiled a shitload more then 3bills that... and whats sickening is that the money will land in the hands of another country/thus weakening OUR country while strengthening theirs...i would MUCH rather the government "wasted" their resources going after these guys instead of weed guys...am I right or am I wrong?

You want to talk about paychecks?

I know several families wondering where the next meal is coming from now that unemployed daddy's only source of income(online poker) is gone. unemployed daddy needs to get off his ass and realize that there is much more $ to be made if he TRIED to WORK for it instead of expecting it to be spoonfed to him... go start a business...contribute to society some how

I guess mommy can set up a webcam till the government decides that is immoral as well. as long as the white man is in control, tits and ass will ALWAYS be moral... and if black man were in control, then, well... nevermind....

but for real, the government never said internet gambling was "immoral"... they said that it was wrong for money to leave the country without being accounted for.... as i've said before, when money leaves the country, the country is weakened... the article said 15 million americans used these internet gambling sites... of the 15 million, how many millions of these people do you think ruined their lives by gambling off every cent to their name? If more then 15 million people had caught on and started gambling and losing their asses and all of their money was being transferred off shore to an account in another country, do you think this would be good for our country? im thinking NO.

our country i desperate for any money right now, and this is a legitimate way to raise SOME funds, and get more money back into the system that very well could have been funding the system of another country...

just sayin...

LONEWOLF