[tltaylor89]

FBI agents have turned up in Washington state interviewing online gambling patrons of Full Tilt, one of the largest Internet poker sites. With the looming implementation of the UIGEA, the US government may be preparing the first use of the ban in a prosecution of an online gambling operator.

Reports on the popular twoplustwo poker forum say that small-time players have received unannounced visits from FBI agents inquiring as to their transactions with Full Tilt. The agents are saying that they are not looking to prosecute the players, but rather to gather information on Full Tilt, indicating the building of a federal case against the online poker operator. While the forum's reasoning based on the facts is purely speculative, the situation seems to lead to certain logical conclusions.

The setting of the investigation in Washington is a key, as the state is one of very few with a law against online poker. Courts have found that the UIGEA only penalizes violators of existing gambling laws, which means that online gambling operators accepting Washington residents would fall under the prohibition's purview.

Further, Washington allows prosecution against patrons of Internet gaming as a felony, a legal leverage that may help investigators coerce cooperation from reluctant gamblers. Courts investigating Internet gambling operations in other jurisdictions have had trouble persuading participants to testify.

The UIGEA is set to begin implementation on June 1st, unless Congress acts before then to change or repeal the law. Barney Frank is leading an effort to regulate online gambling before the implementation date for the UIGEA comes to pass.

However, if the US does implement the online gambling ban, a prosecution of Full Tilt could prove disastrous to the poker company. Even though the violations may be specific to Washington and that state's law, the Department of Justice could use that opening to create such financial and legal trouble as to force Full Tilt out of the US gaming market.

[RickySteve]

Source please.

[TheLock]

You need to post fvcking links when you post text like that dude. You do this all the time.

[tltaylor89]

You need to post fvcking links when you post text like that dude. You do this all the time.

when I post links SBR hits me with infractions

[DrStale]

Thank god the FBI is putting its resources to good use. Unreal.

The country is 100 trillion dollars in debt. Do we legalize and tax online gaming and make a ton of money doing it? Of course not. Let's prosecute them instead, spending millions in taxpayer money to stop people from participating in a recreational activity.

This country is fvcking ridiculous sometimes.

[TheLock]

Thank god the FBI is putting its resources to good use. Unreal.

The country is 100 trillion dollars in debt. Do we legalize and tax online gaming and make a ton of money doing it? Of course not. Let's prosecute them instead, spending millions in taxpayer money to stop people from participating in a recreational activity.

This country is fvcking ridiculous sometimes.

Stop making so much sense.


Also, ttaylor, SBR will not give you infractions for posting a source of a news article.

[Ralphie1412]

Thank god they are getting poker off the streets. We are officially safer.

[tltaylor89]

PokerStars is soon to follow

[tltaylor89]

Barney Frank better do something quick

[bigbank]

Thank god the FBI is putting its resources to good use. Unreal.

The country is 100 trillion dollars in debt. Do we legalize and tax online gaming and make a ton of money doing it? Of course not. Let's prosecute them instead, spending millions in taxpayer money to stop people from participating in a recreational activity.

This country is fvcking ridiculous sometimes.

spot on my friend!

[GiveMeaBJ]

This is going to end eventually with online gambling being regulated in the States.

[hoopster42]

[MartinBlank]

We can all sleep safer tonight. All those crazy, whacked out 10 dollar poker players on FTP are finally being caught....

Whew----and here I was worrying about terrorists and a crippling debt for my kids.

[tltaylor89]

We can all sleep safer tonight. All those crazy, whacked out 10 dollar poker players on FTP are finally being caught....

Whew----and here I was worrying about terrorists and a crippling debt for my kids.

Waste of tax resources

[THEGREAT30]

We don't own or rights they are borrowed, the government can take them at will, good day

[qhdlhdjtn]

fuuk USA GOV that all i say

[minet123]

now realistically, these guys are all over tv and since moneymakers victory have become marketing machines
If they drag them away in chains
IT WOULD BE THE BEST THING THAT EVER HAPPENED TO ONLINE GAMING
Can you imagine the tv time these arrest would get and how long it would take for this to blow up in the Justice dept face for the waste of money this cost

[sharpcat]

The U.S. does this every couple of years to make it seem as if they care to spend their resources on enforcing this crap and it is always the gaming company that is advertising the most.

BetUSA- putting up billboards outside of sport stadiums.

Bodog- Calvin Ayre running his mouth about how the U.S. could never touch him....lol, how did that work out for him.

Full Tilt- is clearly the most advertised poker site out there these days.

I do no think that this is going to effect any other sites, they will probably tighten up a little and stop taking action from states where it is illegal by state law but that will be it.

[tltaylor89]

now realistically, these guys are all over tv and since moneymakers victory have become marketing machines
If they drag them away in chains
IT WOULD BE THE BEST THING THAT EVER HAPPENED TO ONLINE GAMING
Can you imagine the tv time these arrest would get and how long it would take for this to blow up in the Justice dept face for the waste of money this cost

Its already blown up when they could just make it legal online poker reaches 1 in every 5 americans in some form

[tltaylor89]

Wonder how Poker Stars is viewing the matter

[RickySteve]

Article is written by a dubious "news" outlet based on unsubstantiated anonymous posts from an internet forum.

Yawn.

[pitman]

eff shazzzz

[Morrisbettor]

I'm in Washington state...should I destroy my computer with a hammer?

[THE PROFIT]

...

[andywend]

let us smoke every fukking place too!!!

Cigarette smoking should be 100% ILLEGAL except in the privacy of your own home. If you want to kill yourself by smoking those things, then thats your business, don't make it mine.

I sure wish the tobacco companies could figure out a way to make those things more hazardous to the smoker and less hazardous to everyone else.

As far as the UIGEA is concerned, at least that ridiculous legislation led to the republicans losing control of congress in 2006 and this is a die-hard conservative talking.

[jjgold]

these places will be closed to usa players within 2 years

[Glitch]

step it up barney frank.

[Jaug]

Land of the free.

[Jaug]

Do you know how weird this seems to us Europeans? The government trying to control exactly what every person can and cannot do, and not only that, but actually making people who play NL10 holdem criminals?

You pay tax but you can't play poker with your income. Very retrogressive.

[Fishhead]

these places will be closed to usa players within 2 years

HUH?


Back to some previous posts in this thread with questions.

The source he got this from was TWOPLUSTWO, very reliable!........a site you should be reading everyday if you play offshore.

Secondly, the FBI is going after FULL TILT, not the players.

If the FBI really wanted to make a statement, they should arrest a few, if not all, the pros that support and advertise for FullTilt..........nothing could give them more clout.