Crime

Bernie Madoff and Ken “The Shrink” Weitzner: Birds of a Feather

American TV show "60 Minutes" ran a segment on convicted ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff on Sunday, and revealed how he and his wife unsuccessfully tried to commit suicide after he was exposed as a con man and arrested.

The story had an eerie similarity to the tale of Ken "The Shrink" Weitzner, the sleazy Internet entrepreneur who created a pair of websites devoted to gambling and who took his own life last year.

Many of the details of both men's controversial lives are coincidentally alike.

Such as:

Submitted by Thomas Somach on, Wed, 11/02/2011 - 19:35

Professional Poker Player Who Killed Parents Profiled in Dateline NBC

As first broke by Gambling911.com, Dateline NBC produced a segment on professional poker player Ernie Scherer III who was sentenced for the double homicide of his parents, Ernest Scherer Jr., 60, and Charlene Abendroth, 57, in their Castlewood Country Club, California home. The showed aired this past Friday.

The couple was found brutally beaten and stabbed to death in their Pleasanton home in March 2008. Scherer III had attempted to make the crime scene appear as if it were a home invasion.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Sun, 10/30/2011 - 12:42

Cereus, Absolute Poker, UB.com Plan to Liquidate Assets to Pay Back Players

Blanca Games, the company that owns the Cereus Poker Network and its brands, Absolute Poker and UB.com, have submitted a plan to the US Justice Department that would result in the repayment of players. Part of that plan would include the liquidation of assets.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Fri, 10/28/2011 - 18:04

Poker Pro Al Krux Arrested for Criminal Drug Possession

68-year-old professional poker player Al Krux was arrested this week and charged with first-degree criminal possession of marijuana outside his Syracuse, New York home. His son Adam was also charged.

Krux’ lifetime earnings playing live poker are just over $1.3 million. He has made the World Series of Poker Main Event final table on three occasions. His biggest earnings came just at the start of the poker boom online when the WSOP prize pool increase resulted in a $600,000 cashout in 6^th place.

Submitted by Ace King on, Thu, 10/27/2011 - 11:42

Oklahoma Online Bookie Gets Four Years Behind Bars

An Oklahoma online bookmaker was sentenced to a four year prison sentence following a plea agreement that would require him to cooperate with prosecutors.

David Roy Tune, 62, pleaded guilty to 20 counts of violating anti-gambling laws and one count of conspiracy. Most of the wagers were placed online with a now defunct Costa Rica sportsbook.

It was revealed that Tune forwarded some of the money collected from losing bettors to a man in a man in Costa Rica beginning in 2008.

Submitted by Gilbert Horowitz on, Fri, 10/21/2011 - 11:14

Sopranos Actor Arrested as Part of New York Sports Betting Sting

John Marinacci, 56, was one of the individuals caught up in a New York State sports betting sting alleged to have ties with the Gambino crime family. Marinacci appeared in two episodes of the popular HBO series “The Sopranos”. He has also appeared on another HBO series “Boardwalk Empire”.

Marinacci was charged this week with enterprise corruption for taking bets and collecting monies for "the Gambino Bookmaking Enterprise," court papers revealed.

The complaint alleges that the New York sports betting ring utilized an offshore wagering call center.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Thu, 10/20/2011 - 23:43

Bugging Devices and GPS Tracking Used in Illegal Sports Betting Investigation

37 individuals were arrested on Tuesday in New York and charged with running two illegal sports betting and loan-sharking operations. Those arrested include alleged members of the Gambino crime family.

Submitted by Jagajeet Chiba on, Thu, 10/20/2011 - 11:53

The Class Action Lawsuits Against Full Tilt Poker Keep Coming

Yet another class action lawsuit has been filed against defunct online poker company Full Tilt Poker.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Thu, 10/20/2011 - 11:21

BetOnSports Founder Gary Kaplan Out of Prison

The founder of BetOnSports.com, Gary Kaplan, has completed his prison sentence in connection with running what was considered the biggest North American facing sports betting business of its kind during its heyday. Numerous sources have confirmed to Gambling911.com that Kaplan is out of jail, whereabouts unknown.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Tue, 10/18/2011 - 10:47

Feds, Greenville Sheriff Report $2 Million Seized

By SUSANNE M. SCHAFER - Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. --

The Secret Service and the Greenville County Sheriff's Office tracked down and seized more than $2 million from a money laundering scheme tied to online poker operations, officials said Thursday.

U.S. Attorney Bill Nettles said a months-long investigation uncovered two shell companies used to hide illegal gambling proceeds.

Submitted by on, Thu, 10/13/2011 - 21:08

Daniel Tzvetkoff to be Star Witness in Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars Trial

Australian entrepreneur Daniel Tzvetkoff will act as a star witness in the trial of 10 men charged in connection with the operation of three giants in the online poker sector – Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars and Absolute Poker.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Sun, 10/09/2011 - 11:05

Poker Players Alliance Meets With DOJ Regarding Full Tilt Poker

The Poker Players Alliance this week revealed the US Justice Department agreed to meet with the grass roots organization late last month.

The PPA said that it had stressed the importance of American’s being able to play online poker and that the game is one of skill and should not be misconstrued as gambling.

Submitted by Ace King on, Fri, 10/07/2011 - 17:13

Defense Attorneys for Man Named in Full Tilt Poker Case Say Poker is not Gambling

The defense attorneys for a Utah banker and businessman indicted as part of a probe into the online poker firm Full Tilt Poker are trying to convince a federal judge that playing poker on the Web is not a form of gambling.

Lawyers filed their arguments in a Manhattan federal court on Friday and Monday in hopes of having charges against their clients John Campos and Chad Elie dismissed.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Tue, 10/04/2011 - 11:19

Betfair Scandal: Critical Credit Card Hacking Data Withheld From Players

The world’s largest betting exchange, Betfair, has found itself in the middle of a major scandal that resulted in the firm’s Head of Security stepping down.

More than three million customers were affected by a massive credit card hacking scheme. The company made the situation worse by failing to advise customers. The hacking incident in question occurred over 18 months ago.

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Mon, 10/03/2011 - 06:06

Some Poker Players Benefit from Full Tilt Poker Ponzi Scheme

A handful of folks claim to have benefited from the Full Tilt Poker ponzi scheme that was revealed by the US Attorney in the Southern District of New York last week. Adam Levy, a 26-year-old from New York is one of them.

He told the Wall Street Journal this weekend that, upon trying to transfer funds to what was once the world’s second largest Internet poker room, he quickly turned $150 into $9000 before the money was even verified in his account. Turns out, that money was never verified in his account.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Mon, 09/26/2011 - 11:05

Feds Move to Seize Assets Belonging to Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson

US Federal authorities have moved to seize assets belonging to Full Tilt Poker pros Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer and Rafe Furst. The three were named as defendants in a civil complaint alleging they were part of an elaborate “ponzi scheme” related to Full Tilt Poker.

The Feds claim that the three men pilfered the company to pay their bloated salaries by removing funds belonging to customers.

Submitted by Ace King on, Sat, 09/24/2011 - 11:23

US Attorney Southern District of New York Number Two Man Departs

Boyd Johnson, the Deputy U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, will join the New York office of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, the law firm announced today.

Johnson has been second in command to U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara since August 2009 and has been working for the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office since 1999.

Submitted by Jagajeet Chiba on, Thu, 09/22/2011 - 12:45

Source: Feds Wanted Reason to go After Full Tilt Poker Pros

Submitted by C Costigan on, Thu, 09/22/2011 - 12:25

Full Tilt Poker was Not a Ponzi Scheme Says Chris Ferguson Attorney

An attorney for Chris Ferguson insisted Wednesday night that Full Tilt Poker was never a ponzi scheme and that his client was doing nothing wrong.

Submitted by Ace King on, Wed, 09/21/2011 - 21:28

Jeff Ifrah’s Last Stand: “I Plead With All of You To United” Regarding Full Tilt Poker, AGCC

Submitted by C Costigan on, Wed, 09/21/2011 - 20:46

Thread Related to Full Tilt Poker, Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson Gets 122K Views in 4 Hours

Submitted by Alejandro Botticelli on, Tue, 09/20/2011 - 18:39

Read The US Government Amended Complaint re: Full Tilt Poker, Howard Lederer et. al

Case 1:11-cv-02564-LBS Document 50 Filed 09/20/11 Page 1 of 7

Submitted by on, Tue, 09/20/2011 - 13:20

Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer Named in Civil Complaint re to Full Tilt Poker

The US Feds announced on Tuesday that Team Full Tilt Poker pros Chris Ferguson and Howard Lederer have been named as defendants in a civil suit filed by the US Justice Department.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Tue, 09/20/2011 - 12:53