Florida Poker Pro Foils Attempted $100k Robbery
December 3, 2013 10:51 amOn Wednesday, Florida poker pro Eric Riley had one of the most bizarre and harrowing days of his poker career, after crooks tried to relieve him of his poker bankroll twice in the same day.
The incident happened after the 32 year-old had just enjoyed a successful few days plying his trade at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City, having run his initial stake of $80,000 into $100,000. On his visit, he also befriended a man called ‘junior,’ who, at the end of Riley’s time in AC, offered to drive him to New York’s Kennedy Airport.
When they then pulled up at Terminal 5 of the airport, Riley was just about to retrieve his luggage from the boot of the car when the driver made his move and swiftly drove off with the bag that contained Riley’s money.
The stunned, but quick thinking poker pro, subsequently jumped into the nearest yellow cab he could find, and after handing the driver four $100 bills, shouted to him to; “Follow that car!” Fortunately, the cabbie caught up to the thief at a red light several blocks away and Eric Riley was able to snatch his duffel bag back from the still-open trunk, just before Junior sped away once more.
If all this wasn’t bizarre enough, a black Toyota Camry then pulled up, and its two occupants, who identified themselves as undercover policemen, then instructed Riley to jump in. Unfortunately for the poker pro, the men were in fact part of the sting and promptly pulled a gun on him and demanded he hand over the cash. Nevertheless, Riley managed to foil his assailants once more, this time by leaping from the moving car still holding his sack of loot.
The story then finishes with an uninjured Eric Riley hailing down another cab and making his escape before flagging down a real cop to report his wacky story. One can only imagine that the cop would have advised Riley to collect a cheque next time.
Eric Riley, from Florida, is a poker pro who has earned $261,920 from live tournaments throughout his career, including a 4th place finish in October at the $2,500 Isle Open Main Event for $82,038. Riley’s earnings from cash games, however, are not know.