Strike one victory and one loss for online poker fans over the past few days. Minnesota folds it’s hand, NY seizes poker players funds! While we are happy to report the change of the Minnesota State Government backing off it’s case to force internet providers to block online gaming, poker and casino sites from it’s residents, we we saddened when we got the news about the attorney for the Southern District of New York instructing three banks to freeze the accounts of online poker sites.

The Good Poker News:

According to MinnPost (www.minnpost.com), Minnesota state officials backed off of a request for Internet service providers to block access to Web gaming sites.

Six weeks ago, in a first-of-its-kind effort, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division (AGED) sent letters to 11 ISPs requesting the providers block some 200 sites that allow various forms of Internet gaming. In the face of a lawsuit from the Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA) and mounting public pressure, state officials sent letters to those same providers withdrawing the previous request.

They went on to say in the article published yesterday, June 9, 2009:

The state’s Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Decision “has agreed to withdraw” the notice letters it sent in late April, according to the new correspondence. “Whether or not iMEGA ultimately would have prevailed in court is unknown,” wrote John Willems, AGED director. “Notwithstanding, the AGED has agreed to withdraw the notice. As a result, iMEGA has agreed to dismiss its court action without prejudice.”

The Poker Players Alliance, (PPA) was consulted by David Webb, a professional poker player who plays both online and live and began researching the laws regarding the 1961 Wire Act and whether it actually applies to online poker and gaming. The Wire Act was put into place well before anyone even dreamed about the internet and online gaming.

“The more we looked into the actual laws, people started calming down a bit,” Webb was quoted as he traveled to the Bellagio casino in Las Vegas. “But before I did the research, I was pretty panicked. It’s almost like being at risk of being fired from your job, because … it puts your livelihood at risk.”

This is another in a wave of small victories that the PPA has been involved with.

Adverstisement:

The Bad News:

According to the PPA, On or about June 4, 2009, a federal agent working with a federal prosecutor from the Southern District of New York contacted at least two banks in the Los Angeles and Scottsdale areas and requested that accounts containing approximately $19 million in player deposits and payouts be immediately frozen until a seizure warrant could be obtained from an appropriate judicial officer.

The Associated Press (AP), today reported that documents were obtained by the AP that showed that a judge in the Southern New York District issued a seizure warrant last week for an account at a Wells Fargo bank in San Francisco, and that a federal prosecutor told a bank in Arizona to freeze an account.

Also, in a letter dated Friday and faxed to Alliance Bank of Arizona, the prosecutor said that accounts held by payment processor Allied Systems Inc. are subject to seizure and forfeiture “because they constitute property involved in money laundering transactions and illegal gambling offenses.” The letter was signed by Arlo Devlin-Brown, the assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.

The PPA has already sent a letter to the SDNY asking to be heard. This letter is available at www.pokerplayersalliance.org. In a press release dated yesterday, the PPA posted the following:

[NY] PPA Statement on Southern District of NY Action Against Online Poker Players – PPA (06/09/09)

Stay tuned for more developments in this case.