Poker Stars Post Bail For Illegal Sports Betting Suspects

A number of top poker professionals have put up millions of dollars of their own money in order to bail out a group of Asian men involved in an alleged international sports betting ring. Between them, Phil Ivey, Andrew Robl and Daniel “Jungleman12” Cates have posted at least $4 million to release an assortment of Malaysian, Hong Kong and Chinese suspects, which includes the likes of Paul Phua (photo), Sen Chen (Richard) Yong, Wai Kin Yong, and Hui Tang. Commenting during the bail hearing, Phil Ivey, said “I have the utmost respect and trust for them.”
The case revolves around an alleged illegal FIFA World Cup online gambling ring that was believed to have been masterminded by Chinese investment banker Paul Phua, and operated out of three private villas owned by Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Paul Phua is also suspected of belonging to the 14K Triad gang, a criminal organization with strong ties to illegal gambling and prostitution.
Apparently, the Asian gambling ring was then able to handle more than $360 million in sports bets, before Caesars Palace staff became suspicious of the “unusual amount of electronics” used by the men, eventually leading to the FBI’s involvement.
Commenting on how the situation came to a head in mid-July, an article which appeared in  flushdraw.net, stated: “Phua’s group occasionally placed calls for emergency technical service, but otherwise denied Caesars staff ordinary access to the villas.  It was on one of the emergency support visits, however, that a Caesars technician first espied the possible gambling operation being conducted on the premises, and according to the complaint, surreptitiously snapped a few photos on his cell phone.”
Apparently much of the money wagered was channeled through three sites, one of which was the Paul Phua owned IBCBET. However, none of the websites were licensed by the Nevada Gaming Commission, making their use for sports betting activity illegal under Nevada statute. If found guilty, the men can expect to receive a fine of $250,000 for each of their gambling charges, as well as between two to five years in prison.