Wynn Terminates Alliance With PokerStars Following Indictments

Wynn Resorts announced it has terminated a planned alliance with the world’s largest online poker room, PokerStars.  The two companies made their announcement less than two weeks ago.

Michael Weaver, a spokesman for Wynn Resorts, made the announcement late Friday that it had terminated its alliance as a result of a criminal indictment.

Prosecutors in Manhattan announced the indictments of PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, UB.com and 11 individuals associated with the company.  Charges include money laundering.  The US Attorney’s Office has also issued restraining orders against more than 75 bank accounts in 14 countries used by the poker companies.

Gambling911.com featured the story of a payment processor that had just supplied prosecutors with evidence supporting “money laundering”, including the disguising of payment transactions and alleged bribing of small banks based in the US.   Prosecutors unsealed the indictment against the online poker rooms within hours of that report, initially broke by Paul Toohey of the Courier News in Australia. 

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said the defendants "concocted an elaborate criminal fraud scheme, alternately tricking some U.S. banks and effectively bribing others to assure the continued flow of billions in illegal gambling profits."

Caren Bell, a spokeswoman for Fertitta Interactive, which is owned by the brother who run the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Stations Casino, said their deal with Full Tilt Poker “was contingent upon the passage of federal legislation legalizing Internet poker, along with its internal due diligence and a finding of suitability for gaming licensure”.  That partnership was announced just last week. 

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Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher