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Online poker funding goes to court
Written May 25, 2010 by Frank Benjamin | 2 Comments
Douglas Rennick entered a guilty plea May, 11, 2010.
Why does this matter to you? This is possibly the Federal Government making an example of the power of the UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) prior to its full implementation next month.
Rennick provided payment services to online sportsbooks from players in the United States through a network of related companies. Because of this Rennick was indicted on charges of bank fraud, money laundering conspiracy, gambling conspiracy, and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Conviction on these charges carried over 55 years of imprisonment.
But Rennick’s attorney negotiated a deal where Rennick pleaded guilty to a single count of transmission of wagering information, which carries a maximum of a 2 year sentence, and forfeited more than $32 million in seized assets.
A few days after Rennick’s guily plea, Daniel Tzvetkoff pleaded not guilty on charges of money laundering, bank fraud, conspiracy to operate and finance and unlawful gambling enterprise and processing the transfer of electronic funds in connection with gambling payments. Rennick ran a business similar to Rennick.
Tzetkoff’s lawyers are planning an argument that the entire online gambling industry has interest in seeing defended. The argument is that online poker should not be subjected to laws restricting gambling because it is game of skill.
This argument has similar merits to a bill sponsored in the U.S. House of Representatives. It will definitely be interesting to see how this defense is presented, argued, defended and ruled upon. Successful justification would have far reaching ramifications in the fight to legalize online poker in the United States.
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Comments
2 Comments so far
cant wait to see what happens
They should sit them in a game and call it fed-donkey feast…lol