Pokerfarm News Re Cap

Jan. 20, 2012, Posted by Pokerfarm

Ira Rubin faces jail time

One of the central figures involved in the Black Friday scandal, Ira Rubin, pleaded guilty today to three counts at the Manhattan Federal Court.

Rubin was accused of helping offshore poker companies make billions of dollars through phony offshore businesses. Rubin created a number of fake companies with the idea of disguising transactions done in the UIGEA era. Rubin was also likely the key person tied with companies like FTP, Pokerstars and Absolute Poker/Ultimate Bet. He helped these companies process transfers from their American customers and has been charged with a total of nine counts.

He’s facing 18-24 months of jail as things stand now, having been incarcerated since last year’s April.

Olympic contender says he is a part-time poker player

Jamie Kenber, an Oxford graduate and Olympic-level fencer recently admitted to the BBC that he enjoys the game of poker very much.

Kenber, 25, stated that he considers himself a ‘decent hobbyist’ and claims he had some wins on the virtual felt. He also underlined the fact that poker is a long term type of game: ‘I've had some wins, but it's not a reliable source of income unless you have a lot of time to commit.’

He also spoke about the similarities between poker and fencing: ‘There are comparisons. In fencing someone might show you something and you don't know whether they're actually going to go through with it or if it's just an early bluff. That happens in poker as well. And if you think people are doing things for the wrong reasons you can end up losing. It's no coincidence that I enjoy both of them.’

You can read the full interview here.

High stakes players file a complaint against Ultimate Bet owners

Excapsa Software, the former owner of once poker powerhouse Ultimate Bet, is facing a serious charge by no less than eight professional players.

Players like Brad Booth, Dustin Woolf and numerous others are claiming they lost over two million dollars combined in the AP/UB scandal. Employees of Excapsa were cheating their customers with visible hole cards constant screen name changes. They claim this cheating period lasted from 2003 until 2008.

The full RICO complaint can be found on the Courthousenews website.