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| Big Ponzi Pyramid of Chips! |
Won an online poker game and are expecting your money soon? If the game was on fulltiltpoker.com, don't bet on it.
The FBI arrested Raymond Bitar, the CEO of the online gaming site Full Tilt Poker, Monday, on charges he oversaw a $430 million ponzi scheme, according to CNNMoney. Full Tilt owed more than $300 million to online players around the world but only had $60 million in funds to pay off their winnings.
The company allegedly used players' funds to pay off the sites creditors and owners, according to Businessweek.
The site came under greater official scrutiny following a Justice Department crackdown on online gaming sites last spring.
In April of last year, the FBI charged the owners and operators of three online betting sites, including Full Tilt, with illegal gambling and defrauding U.S. banks, MSNBC reported at the time. According to Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, 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 profits."
The Justice Department announced in September that Full Tilt was also stealing players' money to pay off creditors and the firm's executive's salaries. According to the press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office:
"When the scheme finally collapsed, Full Tilt Poker was unable to pay players the approximately $350 million it owed them."
My take:
Wow! 430 Mil...that's a big Ponzi Pyramid...to say the least!
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