Calvin Ayre indicted, Bodog.com domain seized, yet business is as usual

Bodog is undoubtedly one of the primary names in on line gaming since they have been operating from the middle of the 90's. Unluckily, they’re such a big name that the us Division of Homeland Security has been making a case against Bodog. This fairly recently led to the seizure of the website name Bodog.com, which was noted by CalvinAyre.com.

The great news is that Bodog.com isn’t actually that vital to the company’s operation since American players use Bovada Poker now; those outside the U . S . employ the website name Bodog.eu. Thus it doesn’t really make much sense that the Department of Homeland Security would waste their time confiscating this internet site name.

As for Bodog founder Calvin Ayre’s ideas on the matter, he was quoted as saying, “Not certain what to say. BodogBrand.com is a brand-licensing firm based outside the us. The brand left the market last year and the domain in question has been inactive globally more than that.” He added, “We are only at present doing brand licensing deals outside the united states therefore this domain name had no site in any of our existing plans.”

Bodog founder Calvin Ayre has been indicted by federal prosecutors in Baltimore and the Bodog.com domain name has been seized by the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.

In the indictment unsealed currently, Ayre, James Phillip, David Ferguson and Derrick Maloney are charged with performing a gambling business in addition to cash laundering. Rod Rosenstein, the U.S. Attorney in Baltimore, states that the defendants "did intentionally and illegitimately carry out finance, manage, supervise, direct, and posses all or part of an unlawful gambling business, to wit, a gambling business involving on line sports betting."

"Sports betting is illegal in Maryland, and federal law prohibits bookmakers from flouting that law simply because they're found outside of the nation," claimed Rosenstein. "Numerous of the harms which underline gambling prohibitions are increased when the companies work over the net without rules."

The indictment alleges which Bodog communicated with two processors to facilitate payments with gamblers. The processors called in the indictment were JBL Companies, that apparently prepared a minimum of $43 million, and ZipPayments, which allegedly processed a minimum of $57 million. Money from each those processors was once seized by the IRS back in 2008.

Ayre responded to the indictments with a statement on his web site, CalvinAyre.com.

“I see this as abuse of the U.S. criminal justice system for the commercial obtain of huge U.S. corporations," he mentioned. "It is clear that blackjack industry is legal under international law and in the case of these documents is it additionally clear that the rule of law wasn't allowed to decrease a rush to attempt to attempt to win the war of public opinion."

Visitors that visit Bodog.com are welcomed with a Department of Justice seizure see similar to the one that was plastered on the home pages of PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker and UB.com back on April 15, 2011. Nonetheless, the main difference in this notice is that it was issued by the Department of Homeland Security and not the Federal bureau of investigation.

The seizure shouldn't impact the short-term business of Bodog. The Bodog.com website name has not been in make use of since late last year. That website name had already been switched to Bodog.eu and American gamers have been capable to access Bovada.lv since December. Each of those web-sites are operational as always.