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Internet Gambling CEO Arrested by FBI 298

Posted by Zonk from the anyone-hear-a-historical-echo dept.
tightpoker writes to mention the news that several key individuals associated with online gambling site BetonSports have been indicted in a Missouri courtroom. Founder Stephen Kaplan, CEO David Carruthers, 9 other people and four corporations have been charged with crimes ranging from racketeering to fraud. The Sunday Time reports on the story as well, addressing fears this may be a prelude to a crackdown on all online gambling by U.S. law enforcement. From the article: "Nigel Parson, leisure analyst at Williams de Broë, said the move would 'throw online gambling stocks into a spin,' adding: 'David Carruthers is a prominent advocate of online gambling. The fear that this is an escalation of the anti-lobby will trouble markets.' Greg Harris, an analyst at Cannacord, said: 'It is too early to say if this is part of a broader strategy on prevention of internet gambling in the U.S. or if it is the Department of Justice flexing their muscles and trying to influence legislation.'"
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Internet Gambling CEO Arrested by FBI More

Internet Gambling CEO Arrested by FBI

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  • Oy ve... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by hrieke ( 126185 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:28AM (#15736358) Homepage
    So all of this does, outside of keeping all Gambling Web site owners out of the country, is?

    • Re:Oy ve... (Score:5, Interesting)

      by TubeSteak ( 669689 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @11:30AM (#15736824) Journal
      A lot of things.

      It rachets up the pressure on the Senate to pass a bill outlawing internet gambling in the United States of America.

      It suggests to the Average-internet-gambling-Joe that 'he might be next'

      It fscks up the stock prices of these online gambling companies.

      As always, if you've got the time, hit up Google News
      http://news.google.com/news?q=gambling+arrest [google.com]
      Some random snippets
      "The Justice Department is seeking the forfeiture of $4.5 billion, cars and computers from the defendants, including Betonsports PLC and three other companies."

      "Several of the defendants live outside the United States, which will make them hard to catch, said U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway in St. Louis."

      "Last week, the House passed a bill that would make it illegal for American banks and credit card issuers to make payments to online gambling sites. The bill's fate in the Senate is uncertain, in part because of exemptions granted for horse racing and state lotteries."
    • But it's even money that *somehow* it's connected to Jack Abramoff. :-)

    • Here's The Truth (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Chagatai ( 524580 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @03:05PM (#15738754) Homepage
      The real reason they were arrested was because Uncle Sam was unable to tax them. Think about it. Americans are spending $4.5 billion per year towards online gambling sites like these that are located overseas. The government would like a slice of that pie, but they are unable to tax that revenue because the foreign companies don't fall under the jurisdiction of the IRS. Consequently, Congress brings up a whole bunch of warnings and laws about being unable to gamble online. And what better way to cut it off than to arrest CEOs who step foot on American soil?

      Control. That's what it's all about.

  • Hey Authorities... (Score:4, Funny)

    by William Robinson ( 875390 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:30AM (#15736368)
    I bet 200 bucks, that there will be dupe of this stroy within 2 days.

  • Watch the share price fall (Score:5, Informative)

    by jonv ( 2423 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:30AM (#15736374)
    BBC article here [bbc.co.uk]

  • It's only a matter of time (Score:5, Insightful)

    by vijayiyer ( 728590 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:30AM (#15736376)
    internet gambling does not allow the government to take their cut and is therefore in direct competition with them. Expect many more such crackdowns soon.

    • Re:It's only a matter of time (Score:5, Funny)

      by M-G ( 44998 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:37AM (#15736415)
      That, and those poker chips block the Internet's tubes....

      Also, with midterm elections looming, it doesn't hurt for the Republicans to crack down on some 'immoral' activity to appease their 'values' voters.

      • Re:It's only a matter of time (Score:5, Insightful)

        by Jtheletter ( 686279 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:43AM (#15736452)
        If by values voters you mean Indian casinos contributing to campaign coffers. It's interesting to note that many of the reps against online gambling seem to have no problem at all supporting local tribal casinos. It's all about who's greasing palms and playing nice with the government (ala taxes).
        • That's how ALL gambling laws are determined. How many states have lotteries, but outlaw all other forms of gambling? Hardly any government official is against gambling as long as they get a cut.
      • Also, with midterm elections looming, it doesn't hurt for the Republicans to crack down on some 'immoral' activity to appease their 'values' voters.

        Completely off topic, but out of curiosity...

        Where, in the bible, does it say anything about the morality or immorality of gambling? It speaks out against adultery, incest, rape (especially where it says the rapist has to marry the girl), but I must have missed the meeting where they added anything about gambling.

        • Where, in the bible, does it say anything about the morality or immorality of gambling? It speaks out against adultery, incest, rape (especially where it says the rapist has to marry the girl)

          Suddenly, "magic golden plates" don't seem so crazy, do they?
          • True, but "Voted least crazy religion" is not a great selling point on your advertising literature.

            They'd be better off sticking with the tried and true "Sole chance of avoiding everlasting damnation", or failing that, "We allow up to 7 wives".

        • Re:It's only a matter of time (Score:5, Informative)

          by Tx ( 96709 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:56AM (#15736534) Journal
          Searching google for "bible gambling", the first hit gives us this [gotquestions.org]:

          Question: "What does the Bible say about gambling? Is gambling a sin?"

          Answer: Gambling can be defined as "risking money in an attempt to multiply the money on something that is against the odds." The Bible does not specifically condemn gambling, betting, or the lottery. The Bible does warn us, however, to stay away from the love of money (1 Timothy 6:10; Hebrews 13:5). Scripture also encourages us to stay away from attempts to "get rich quick" (Proverbs 13:11; 23:5; Ecclesiastes 5:10). Gambling most definitely is focused on the love of money and undeniably tempts people with the promise of quick and easy riches.
          • That is disappointingly vague. The admonishment against get rich quick schemes is good advice, but hardly seems against the spirit of the friendly low stakes gambing that most people take part in. "Love of money" is even more vague.

            Ultimately, gambling is one of those things that reminds me of grade school where the entire class was forbidden from some activity because one or two people were unable to behave. It's ultimately unfair, but mostly unavoidable if you care at all about people with poor self

            • Re:It's only a matter of time (Score:4, Insightful)

              by rainman_bc ( 735332 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @12:15PM (#15737259)
              It's ultimately unfair, but mostly unavoidable if you care at all about people with poor self control (gamblers and other addicts). Social problems never have easy solutions.

              Under that premise, we should outlaw:

              Buffets -> ever seen the size of the fat bastards at a Buffet? Those poor fat bastards are doomed if they continue to eat at that rate.
              Candy -> sure it's okay once in a while, but causes tooth decay
              Alcohol -> it's the scourge of society - too much alcoholism
              Casino Gambling -> wtf is the difference between gambling online and gambling in a casino? Only difference I see is the greedy govt doesn't get a cut. Tough shit for them for not legalizing internet gambling IMO.
              Sex -> too many pervs out there that can't control themselves. We should sterlize everyone.

              I realize that I'm drawing a slippery slope, but I'm just doing it to prove a point. Truth is, some people just can't control themselves with anything, and we shouldn't outlaw choice. /me works for an internet gambling company in a round about way.
          • he Bible does warn us, however, to stay away from the love of money (1 Timothy 6:10; Hebrews 13:5).

            Then every bastard priest in the vatican ( the richest city-state in the world) should be subject to eternal damnation no?

            Look out, here come the bible thumping troll mods to make sure that comment's never seen haha!
          • The bible is an open endorsement for gambling.

            If getting rich quick and love of money are sins, then certainly gambling,
            which in the long run makes you poorer, is a Good Thing.

            In fact the state lotteries, indian Casonos, and the online gambling sites, perform the valuable public service of sinning on our behalf, so that we all can become poorer and go to heaven.
        • Their values voters care about lots of 'morals' issues not well documented in the bible. You might as well ask: where's the prohibition against human cloning in the bible?

        • Where, in the bible, does it say anything about the morality or immorality of gambling?

          You aren't the first person to ask that question.
          http://www.google.com/search?q=gambling+bible [google.com]

          I'll give you the quick summary:
          The Bible doesn't specifically prohibit gambling. However... The Good Book says not to love money or seek quick riches & gambling is never(?) shown as a form of recreation or 'fun' to be emulated.

          So, gambling is considered somewhat sinful, and the free flowing booze in casinos adds some extra z

      • Guess who plays poker...EVERYONE
        If it is "real" gambling being shut down, most people dont care, but anyone politician that fucks with online poker will be looking for a new job very quickly.

    • Stupid Logic (Score:2, Interesting)

      by brunes69 ( 86786 )
      By this logic, the government would *want* to legalize online gambling, since they could then tax it.

      No, sorry - revenue has nothing to do with this. It's "What about the children" syndrome running rampant again.

      • Can't tax the interbutt when the countries are offshore.

        Same argument as legalizing drugs. Even if Congress was struck by lightning and everyone suddenly thought it was a capital idea, who's going to pay the price of pot PLUS tax when they can still get it without? (hint: legalizing anything makes its illicit production even easier to conceal)

        • Re:Stupid Logic (Score:4, Insightful)

          by badfish99 ( 826052 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:58AM (#15736549)
          So was repealing prohibition a bad idea because everone still goes to speakeasies and drinks hooch? Or are you perhaps mistaken?
          • Not exactly an ideal analogy, since alcohol producers were around before prohibition and some managed to stay in business during (by making fruit juice or something) until it was over. After prohibition, we still had this infrastructure which made getting the flow going again easier.

            With drugs, at least at the start, it will be so tightly controlled as to be a government monopoly. The prices will be far higher in percentage compared to illicit product compared to alcohol (which sees very little bootleggi
            • Well, Coca-Cola was around before cocaine was prohibited, and has continued to make a living by simply removing the active ingredient from their patent medicine. I suppose they will go back to their original formula one it is legal again: it will surely be better than the stuff they make now.

        • Re:Stupid Logic (Score:3, Insightful)

          by jandrese ( 485 )
          By that logic, who would pay taxes for _anything_ since it should be easy as pie to sell Twinkies, screwdrivers, or anything else under the table? Also, why would a seller risk his neck avoiding some 5 or 10% tax (that his customers are paying)? If it were legalized the illicit production would mostly dry up because it's much much easier to operate inside of the law than out. Given the choice, I doubt few dealers would choose a life in the worst part of town hounded by the police and thrown in jail every
          • By that logic, who would pay taxes for _anything_ since it should be easy as pie to sell Twinkies, screwdrivers, or anything else under the table? Also, why would a seller risk his neck avoiding some 5 or 10% tax (that his customers are paying)?

            Ever know people who own a restaurant? Any business that receives cash in return for services rendered can easily tear up a bunch of receipts and pocket the cash to spend on personal effects.

            As long as you show some profit the tax man leaves you alone (generally).
        • Can't tax the interbutt when the countries are offshore.


          In the same way, you'd say they can't stop it.

          But they are having a pretty good go at that by legislating against the money (credit card) transfers.

          Just amend that bill to tax the transfers to online gambling companies instead of prohibit it outright.
          • Just amend that bill to tax the transfers to online gambling companies instead of prohibit it outright.

            Just send your money to an overseas bank, then conduct the transaction from there.
        • hint: legalizing anything makes its illicit production even easier to conceal

          Exactly! That's why the huge black-market cigarette trade is the most serious issue facing us today.

          Oh wait, there is no such thing! In reality, most people tend to abide by the law, and pay the (50% or whatever) cigarette tax. They'd do exactly the same if pot was legalized too.

    • Re:It's only a matter of time (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Usagi_yo ( 648836 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @11:16AM (#15736701)
      The U.S just arrested a CEO of a foreign Corporation for doing internet business that was contrary to U.S law. Next time we complain about Google or Yahoo bending over backwards to adhere to Chinese law, we should take into account our own policies.
    • Reminds me of the trumped up crap against the russian oil barron. Have to wonder about our gov. now.

  • Of course they lost (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:31AM (#15736383)
    The government gets a healthy cut from the earnings in Las Vegas and Atlantic City. Politicians get hefty contributions due to the earnings from Native American casinos. And lotteries like Powerball are the government's own game.

    So it's no wonder that online gambling sites lose, and will continue to lose in court. You've got to pony up to the bosses if you want to work in this town. (Preferably, both Democrats and Republicans.)

    • Re:Of course they lost (Score:5, Interesting)

      by oahazmatt ( 868057 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:58AM (#15736550) Journal
      Actually, it's not just online gambling.

      There are numerous "cashless" casinos in my area. There was a surge of them. You bought a monthly membership, vouchers, however each one chose to set up, and you would compete for material prizes such as televisions, event tickets, and so on. Most of these casinos also donated 10% of their monthly earnings to charities.

      The problem came about first when the local government realized they weren't getting anything special from these gambling halls, and when a small, small, small yet vocal group protested them, saying how their significant others were throwing away large amounts of money to be part of these casinos. This group launched a campaign and instead of seeking help for their loved ones, just wanted the places shut down. Not getting a lot of incentive from the casinos themselves, pressure was put on. I believe only two of the "game rooms" are still in business now.

  • My question... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by KingSkippus ( 799657 ) * on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:38AM (#15736418) Homepage Journal

    Before I jump to conclusions, my question is this: Are they really guilty of fraud and racketeering (very serious crimes that should be severely punished), or is this just an excuse to try to stop online gambling? I would be interested in seeing and hearing the evidence that gets presented before making up my mind.

    Of course, both sides are going to claim what will support their viewpoint.

    On the one hand, the DoJ has been itching for any excuse to go after these folks for a long time, which doesn't help the perception of them. If they had remained legally neutral to the matter and just stuck to what the law says, I sure would be more comfortable that they actually have our best interest at heart and that they're not just pandering to right-wing nutcases.

    On the other, the online gambling industry is one that is notoriously rife with fraud, and it's entirely possible that these guys are scum that have been doing what they're accused of or worse. For the sake of their industry, I hope that they have realized the scrutiny that they've been under and have made very diligent efforts to stay clean and legitimate and can prove so in court. Otherwise, these two may very well have doomed their entire industry, even the players that are 100% honest and that just want to provide an entertainment service.

    I think that the most telling sign of what the truth is is whether the DoJ starts chasing down all online gambling houses for "fraud" and "racketeering." At any rate, it will be interesting to see how it all turns out.

    • Re:My question... (Score:3, Interesting)

      by jfengel ( 409917 )
      The article says that they had "not paid federal wagering taxes on $3.3 billion on wagers taken by the firm". At a guess, if the house is taking a 2% cut, at a 30% tax rate, that's almost $20 million that they owe. That's enough money to justify arresting somebody and having them extradited.

      (There's a whole big deal going on between the US and Britain with respect to extradition, having to do with levels of proof, but I'll assume for the moment that they've got some proof on this guy. It's a separate argum

  • Amazing (Score:3, Insightful)

    by voice_of_all_reason ( 926702 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:38AM (#15736421)
    What part of "bread and circuses" does this latest incarnation of fuedalism not understand?

  • "Harm legitimate business"? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by dbc001 ( 541033 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:46AM (#15736477)
    "Misuse of the Internet to violate the law can ultimately only serve to harm legitimate businesses."

    I don't see how Internet Gambling could harm legitimate business...

    • Re:"Harm legitimate business"? (Score:5, Interesting)

      by badfish99 ( 826052 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @11:08AM (#15736627)

      It is a legitimate business. At least, it is here in the UK, and in most other countries.

      The US makes laws that criminalize activities by non-US citizens that take place entirely outside the US. How else could David Carruthers have been arrested, when his business is based in Costa Rica?

    • As you probably know and heard, a lot of those politicians are sponsored by actual gambling enterprises (that have actual buildings). The actual hard-bulding gambling business gets hurt because the people don't have to leave their home anymore to gamble, your neighbours or other people from your church can't see you go online, but they can see you outside the casino. Just like online electronic stores are hurting the electro-farmer down the road, so it is with a lot of other business.
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • I often see people who say that with true capitalism, the market will regulate itself.

      But when an operation (say, a casino or some other service business) is actually lying about what they're delivering for your money, that's different. The market could police itself, but when you're dealing with people who are committing fraud, etc., an established rule of law and a government to enforce it is a lot less... medieval. For some fantastic portrayal of this stuff getting hashed out, I highly, highly recomme

  • Yeah. right. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by farker haiku ( 883529 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:49AM (#15736507) Journal
    "Illegal commercial gambling across state and international borders is a crime," said U.S Attorney Catherine Hanaway of the Eastern District of Missouri in a press release. "Misuse of the Internet to violate the law can ultimately only serve to harm legitimate businesses.

    I'm from Missouri, and I know who those legitimate businesses are. Harrahs, Ameristar, The Casino Queen, and The President. And I bet (pardon the pun) that I know who they donate to. I'm looking at you, Catherine Hanaway.

  • The problem is this... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Churla ( 936633 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @10:55AM (#15736527)
    First they go after big fish in the online gambling market who are operating within the US.
    Then they run out of those.
    Next they go after big fish in the online gambling market who are operating outside the US.
    Other governments tell US to go DIAF
    US sees the only other way to address problems as going after the gamblers instead.
    US uses this as a reason to further OK tracking all internet traffic.
    We know where that goes.

    There's no good outcome from this path. But greed will drive politicians to it.
  • Ok, so the US is fighting a couple of wars, holding people indefinitely in GITMO, probably being sucked into another conflict in the middle-east, etc. and THIS is what we spend our time on?
    Gambling?
    Something is afoot. Methinks it is time to re-enlicit support from the conservative base... elections are around the corner. And we all know that these rich 'moblike' online casino owners are probably funding terrorism, right? Its the perfect issue. You have the 'moral high-ground' and a non-US resident at whic
  • Will this reduce online gambling spam? I don't care if those guys continue to operate or not. Let other people waste their money on that crap. It's a personal choice and I decline that form of entertainment... I think it should remain as such.

    As for gambling tax revenues, I think there's plenty of law in place already. If the IRS determines that you have income that cannot be explained and they think it's from undeclared income from gambling, then let them prove it. The IRS is more than capable of crea
  • Those commercials were annoying.

    Now can they please arrest the people who make that HeadOn crap?

  • Why is gambling illegal? Because god says so? Because compulsive adults hurt other people? Because serious criminals commiting other crimes also make and spend money gambling? Because illegal gambling makes the business more lucrative for the illegal "house", while keeping its customers from using police when something goes wrong?

    Is gambling inherently any more criminal than drugs? Does criminalizing it help society more than it hurts?

  • Very sad (Score:2, Interesting)

    by darjen ( 879890 )
    What this amounts to is that Americans have no concept of freedom or property rights such as they claim. If I have $10 and wish to wager it on the outcome of an event that has a certain chance of success or failure, I am not hurting anyone other than myself. The irony is that if they would have paid taxes (which I consider to be nothing more than extortion) on their earnings to the federal government it sounds like they would have been allowed to survive unmolested. It just goes to show the lengths to which

  • missing the point? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by dm0527 ( 975468 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @11:49AM (#15737001)

    A lot of the comments revolve around the obligatory "here goes the government again" comments.

    Perhaps I'm a bit naive, but it seems obvious to me that jumping on some website hosted in some third-world country and giving them my credit card so I can play poker through some system controlled by the website against God-knows-who just seems like an invitation to get ripped off.

    I'm just not surprised in the least bit to hear some online gambling site shut down or involved parties being arrested for fraud or whatever. Frankly, I'm surprised it's taken this long for some government somewhere to actually look at these sites and realize that there is no way at all to stop the owners thereof from ripping off customers coming and going (aside from the massive amounts of money they make simply from the actual gambling itself).

    I've got one of the smallest lists of "things I love that our government has its fingers in", but you should also realize that along with the money the government collects around legalized gambling in the US, they also regulate it massivly and crack down fast and hard on places that are ripping people off (above the fact that gambling itself is a ripoff).

    - dm
    • Why do you assume these people are guilty of credit card or other fraud? They have been in operation for a number of years; if there were significant complaints about them, the credit card companies would stop honouring their charges. And the gamblers, who are not as significantly stupid as you assume, would avoid the site in droves. The New Yorker had an article some time ago about on-line poker sites. They put a lot of software effort into tracking betting patterns, to ensure that two or three players at
  • Damn, I used to work in booking a while ago at that place, it was a huge operation. Maybe 200-300 people only taking bets over the phone.
  • I'm gambling with money I've earned and already paid taxes on. If I should be lucky and win I should be expected to claim the winnings as income just as I would at a B&M casino. If I do not, it's tax evasion. What's the problem here? State lotteries are on a 50% vig or worse that's the problem.

  • This is NOT a gambling case (Score:3, Informative)

    by ChrisA90278 ( 905188 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @12:17PM (#15737286)
    Everyone seems to be complainning the the FBI is cracking down on GAMBLING. No, it is fraud and non-payment of taxes. The actuall gambling is being done overseas where it is legal but they are ripping off customers here in the US. Come on now, how many of you really believe those on-line gamming site really pay out all the winning and don't seriously cheat their customers. That is fraud. Even if they don't cheat they still own taxes on their US operations. Yes even Honda, a japanees car company has to pay US taxs on the money they make in the US and likewise do on-line gabling companies. The IRS sais that even drug dealers are required to pay taxes on their dealling (of couse they'd be stupid to claim such income on a signed government form) but still if they don't pay that is one more charge added when they are caught.

    Apearently there IS NO LAW against on-line gambling possably there are some state laws but the FBI does not enforce state laws. These guys could have been sell shoes buti f they cheated customers and didn't pay taxes they be shut down just the same --- well likey not the FBI does not waste time with small scale crimes and I doubt they'd be selling $3 billion in shoes

    Even the Porn industry is mostly above board and gets the required permits, pays resonable wadges, takes out payroll and income tax withholdings and keeps books and pays taxes. on-line gambling could do the same but apearently these guys didn't. This is NOT a big deal.

  • This applies to sports betting, not casino games (Score:3, Informative)

    by RxScram ( 948658 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @12:43PM (#15737568)
    Most of the posts I have read seem to imply that this applies to all casino games, including poker, blackjack, etc. From the research I have done, current federal law only prohibits betting on sporting events. This is part of the Wire act, of which the applicable portion is: "Whoever being engaged in the business of betting or wagering knowingly uses a wire communication facility for the transmission in interstate or foreign commerce of bets or wagers or information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers on any sporting event or contest, or for the transmission of a wire communication which entitles the recipient to receive money or credit as a result of bets or wagers, or for information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both."

    In February 2001, Judge Stanwood Duval of the US District Court in New Orleans ruled "'in plain language' [the Wire Act] does not prohibit Internet gambling 'on a game of chance.'"

    On November 21, 2002, the US Fifth Circuit Federal Appeals Court upheld Duval's ruling, stating: "The district court concluded that the Wire Act concerns gambling on sporting events or contests... We agree with the district court's statutory interpretation, its reading of the relevant case law, its summary of the relevant legislative history, and its conclusion."

    The Appeals Court further states: "Because we find neither the Wire Act nor the mail and wire fraud statutes may serve as predicates here, we need not consider the other federal statutes identified by the Plaintiffs... As the district court correctly explained, these sections may not serve as predicates here because the Defendants did not violate any applicable federal or state law."

    The Appeals Court specifically cites Duval's statement: "[A] plain reading of the statutory language [of the Wire Act] clearly requires that the object of the gambling be a sporting event or contest." This is very explicit language. You would have to jump through a lot of mental hoops to consider the playing of online poker to be "a sporting event".

    Finally, in November 2004, the Caribbean island nation of Antigua and Barbuda won a World Trade Organization ruling that United States legislation criminalizing online betting violates global laws. In April 2005, the WTO Appellate Body affirmed the principal conclusions involved. What effect this will have on the U.S. morality police has yet to be seen, probably none, but at least it gives the online poker players and gamblers some glimpse of hope.

    Personally, I don't really care about sports betting and related things being illegal, as that isn't my area of interest. But I do see a long slippery slope ahead if things like this continue.

    Source: http://www.playwinningpoker.com/online/poker/legal / [playwinningpoker.com]

  • Wow... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Greyfox ( 87712 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @02:53PM (#15738688) Homepage Journal
    I bet he didn't see that coming.

    It's not the first time something like this has happened though. I seem to recall the FBI arresting a bunch of USAians who'd set up offshore gambling sites a while back. And if you ever had anything to do with helping to break copyright protection encryption you'd best steer clear of this country. If you've ever worked on an OSS encryption product you might want to avoid the USA, too. Never know when our guys might get a bug up their ass and arrest you as an international arms distributor or something like that.

    As for the US Citizens, you ARE registering to vote and voting against the incumbent, right? Chances are the guy you're voting against is retarded. Chances are the guy you're voting for is too, but it'll be a few years before he establishes the ties to do much damage and by then you can help vote him out again.

  • Hmmm (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Sv-Manowar ( 772313 ) on Tuesday July 18, 2006 @05:59PM (#15739898) Homepage Journal
    Interesting details on his arrest:
    * NO bail
    * feds are seeking over $4 billion in unpaid taxes
    * Carruthers was targeted as part of a larger investigation
    * Carruthers was held incommunicado until appearing at trial
    * FULL TEXT of the fed press release announcing the indictment details

    The news from the past few days made it seem like they were just leaning on Carruthers to help with the Kaplan investigation. But some of this stuff is very broad... "equipment used to place bets" is probably just a server. Sounds like he will be away for quite a while.

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