Pokerstars.com busted by FBI - just as NZ TV campaign begins

Domain seized by the FBI amid accusations of money laundering and bank fraud; sister site hosts Queenstown tournament.

NBR staff
Sat, 16 Apr 2011

Pokerstars.com began running television commercials in New Zealand this week, inviting Kiwis to join the world's largest poker site.

The swish, high production value ads looked alluring.

But anyone who tried to log on today would have been met with this message (click to zoom; UPDATE: access not seems to have re-opened for international players):

As Ars Technica explains, the FBI has seized the Pokerstars.com domian (web address) along with that of Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker.

Online gambling has been illegal in the US since 2006.

PokerStars sought to get around the legislative ban by bribing small-time banks to trick payment processors like Visa and MasterCard, allowing Americans to keep on gambling, the FBI alleges.

Now - finally, the US Department of Justice has cottoned on, spurring the FBI investigation that saw Pokerstars.com taken offline today.

As sister site, Pokerstars.net, is still online.

Pokerstars.net, which revolves around play-money gambling (though also feeds players through to the real-money Pokerstars.com), sponsors an Australasian Poker tour, including a Queenstown leg.

A third spin-off site, Pokerstars.tv, has been promoted locally by TV personality and Auckalnd bar/nightclub owner Brooke Howard Smith.

As a result of the FBI investigation, 11 individuals behind Pokerstars and the two other sites whose domains were seized today now face "at least" $US3 billion in money laundering penalties, in addition to the shut-down of 76 bank accounts in 14 countries, Ars Technica reports.

NBR wonders: have the New Zealand commercials been paid for? And we're also not so sure about the disclaimer that ran with the ads. BSA, start your engines ...

NBR staff
Sat, 16 Apr 2011

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Pokerstars.com busted by FBI - just as NZ TV campaign begins